A Konoha Coup d'etat
by The Reading Maid
Summary: When Leaf Shinobi occupy Konoha's dungeons, when Leaf chunin's faces occupy wanted posters, when an outsider occupies the desk of the Hokage, something is not clearly not right. But how do you fix what no one else believes is wrong? Action. Angst. Romance
1. Prologue: Silver Eyes

I do not own Naruto…

**A KONOHA COUP D'ETAT**

Prologue: Silver Eyes

Everyone knows about the Hyuuga and the Uchiha clans of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. These are, or in the Uchiha case _were_, the two most powerful clans in the entire village. Their title was not given just because they produced powerful ninja, though. Both clans had powerful kekkei genkai: the byakugan and the sharingan. But what many people did not know was that there was another clan in Leaf that had a powerful, eye related kekkei genkai. It was called the Chaita clan, and they possessed the power of the halsegan.

The halsegan and its abilities were not used as a mind-bogglingly powerful offensive, or an impenetrable defense, or to copy other ninjas' abilities. The user of the halsegan had the power hypnotize. By looking directly into the eyes of their prey, they can completely take control of his or her mind. The length of control is dependent upon the strength of the Chaita, as is the distance from which they can control.

The top of the Chaita family tree is a man named Kokuzoku. He rules his family with a fist colder and fiercer than even the Hyuuga. Isolation is his preferred social state. The Chaita, more than twice the size of the Hyuuga, exist in their own settlement a short distance beyond the walls of Konoha. Their family was not involved with the initial settlement and organization of the village, but soon after its conception engaged in several diplomatic treaties that resulted in the semi-autonomic relationship that stands today. Peaceful yet watchful neighbors, the Chaita and the Konohians keep to their own business.

The Chaita are a body briefly discussed in elementary history classes. The students remember what they have to for the test, but soon after the knowledge they once had of the Chaita slips away into the black hole where school learning deemed unnecessary so often goes. However, the Chaita have never been a people eager to share their secrets with the world; these educational failures have never seemed to bother them.

…

…

Tsunade, Hokage of the Leaf Village, put her feet up on her desk and sighed. It was late afternoon; peach and tangerine light filled her office. If she had been in a better mood, she would have noticed its beauty, but she was not. All day she had been meeting with the heads of Konoha's various clans, discussing their ninja, any new children born, any questions and/or complaints they had, etcetera, etcetera. Some clan leaders were great: no questions or complaints, in and out in five minutes. But some clans lived to make her day a nightmare.

_If I hear one more complaint about taxes, or noisy neighbors, or Naruto Uz-._ Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Shizune entered, carrying a clipboard and a cup of tea.

"Was that the last one, Shizune?" Tsunade asked wearily, gratefully accepting the mug and taking a deep inhale.

"Actually, you have one more," Shizune replied, checking her list. "Uh…we still have to meet with the Chaita clan."

"Of course," Tsunade moaned, putting a hand to her brow and sighing deeply. "Why would you schedule them at the end of the day? As if I wasn't already pissed already-."

Shizune put a calming hand to her Hokage's shoulder. "Yes, but now you don't have to sit through any more. You can go right to this."

Shizune pulled a bottle from her pocket and plopped it on the desk.

Tsunade opened weary eye.

In one quick, scorching gulp she downed the rest of her tea. Her fingers were wrestling with the top of the bottle when Shizune's hand shot out to stop her.

"Not now! It's your reward for _after_ the meeting!"

But Tsunade would not release the prize so easily. They struggled silently, nearly crushing the bottle in their ferocious grasps.

A knock echoed across the room. In a flash, Tsunade was seated behind her desk straightening some papers, and Shizune was standing behind her, clipboard at the ready, the precious bottle once again stowed in her pocket. The guard opened the door and poked his head in.

"Lady Hokage? It's Lord Koku-zuzzo. I mean Kozukoko. I mean, uh, Kokozuzu!" A blush appeared on the man's stubble-covered cheeks. "I mean Zukokoko? Zuzukoku! Kuku-."

"_Thank you_," Tsunade hissed, strumming her fingers threateningly on the table. "Please send Lord _Kokuzoku_ in. Now."

"Y-yes! Kokuzoku! That's it…" The guard grinned sheepishly, then, catching Tsunade's withering glare, flinched and retreated.

Shizune put a delicate hand to her face, shaking her head slowly. Tsunade took a deep, shuddering breath. She stared at the opening doors with a calm, set face.

Enter, Lord Kokuzoku. He walked tall and proud, despite the fact that a cane had recently been added to his persona. His cold, silver eyes swept the room, taking in every detail. The Chaita lord was flanked by two younger ninja.

One was a woman probably in her mid-twenties. Long, blue-silver hair fell to her waist, while blue-silver lashes framed a pair of silver eyes, identical to her grandfather's. The other ninja was a male the same age with the same blue silver hair, but his was arranged in a messy shag on his head, part of it falling into his face, covering one of his silver eyes.

Several feet from Tsunade's desk, they bowed, bending their slim frames just enough to be respectful. "Lady Hokage," Kokuzoku said, his words flowing forward with the air of liquid silver. The three straightened.

"Lord Kokuzoku." Tsunade nodded her head slightly.

"May I introduce my grandson, Denkou, and my granddaughter, Raikou. One of them will be my successor."

She nodded again in recognition, suppressing the chill bolting up her spine. Folding her hands with authority before her, she gave the three a hard stare. "Let's get right to business, then. Have any babies been born to your clan in the last year?"

As Tsunade ran down the list of questions, Shizune scribbled on her clipboard Kokuzoku's responses. Ten minutes later, the last question came. As Shizune made a final note, Tsunade leaned back in her chair, sorely tempted to put up her feet but not quite willing to look unprofessional in front of this man.

"Now, Lord Kokuzoku, are there any matters you wish to discuss with me?"

Kokuzoku took a small step forward. "Actually, I have a matter of great importance that I need to bring to your attention."

When he did not continue, Tsunade asked, impatiently, "Yes?"

"Well, it has something to do with the way you have been running the village." He took another step forward.

Tsunade's nerves began to jangle; irritation, however, was the emotion she responded with.

"You have no say in how I govern the village unless it directly relates to the Chaita, Kokuzoku. I'll bring up the original documents _right now_ if you've got a problem."

Kokuzoku raised a submissive hand. "I am well aware of the legal situation between your government and my family, Lady Tsunade. My sentiments fall somewhat beyond the realm of historical documentation."

Confusion, as well as irritation, now rose in the Hokage.

"I am sorry, Lord Kokuzoku, but-!" Tsunade stood in her chair and glared at the man. Right in the eye. Big mistake.

_Wh-._

In that one glance, Tsunade's world was lost in a swirling, silver spiral. She was thrown down the spinning vortex, completely lost to Kokuzoku's halsegan.

Shizune, watching her mistress, saw Tsunade's brown eyes widen, then almost close. Her whole face relaxed and her eyes took on a distant, far away look.

"Lady Tsunade!" Shizune dropped her clipboard and grabbed Tsunade's shoulder. "Tsunade!" Before she could move again, two blue and silver blurs had grabbed her in a vice-like grip. Hands held her chin and turned her face. Shizune's dark eyes met a pair of silver ones and a second later, she too was lost down the silver spiral of the halsegan.

…

…

The guards standing outside Tsunade's office heard a small commotion. As one, they burst through the door, weapons out, surveying the scene.

"Lady Hokage, is there a problem?"

But nothing seemed wrong. The three Chaita ninja stood before the Hokage, Tsunade sat at her desk, and Shizune stood behind her. Kokuzoku and the other two bowed to Tsunade and left, passing the guards without the slightest acknowledgement.

"Lady Hokage? We heard a noise-."

Tsunade looked up from her desk. "No, everything's fine."

The guards retreated. Tsunade spent several minutes scribbling busily on a long piece of parchment. Upon its completion, she sent it away with Shizune for distribution.

Tsunade put her feet up on the desk and, with a contented smile, looked out the window. Had anyone been with her, they would have seen the cold, silver glint in her large, brown eyes.

…..

**August 3, 2010: Why hello, readers! Three years after this story's original posting, The Reading Maid decided that her writing had changed dramatically. With the story still in the process of being written, she feared that new readers would see the sub-standard writing of the early chapters and be scared away before the writing improved. She decided to do a rough re-write of the first chapter in the hopes of ensnaring a few new readers. Rewriting is hard, but she hopes she has done enough to encourage more readers to delve further into the story. **

…

…

Okay, readers, here I go again. Starting off on new, big long action/adventure/romance story based off Naruto. But this time, I am going to incorporate more people, including all the Rookie Nine and Team Gai. I am so excited about this story, it's not even funny.

Now, I know probably a lot of authors say this, but I'm gonna say it too. This was the prologue, so please don't judge the rest of the story just from this. I myself try and read at least the first two chapters of a story before I decide to read it or not. So please, please, please give this story a shot. I'll get chapter one up as soon as I can, so just hang on. Also, this chapter was kind of short. I'm gonna try and make the future chapters a bit longer.

That's about it. Oh! I don't know that much about Tsunade and Shizune, but I tried to do some research on them before I actually wrote about them. If there's something about them that I did terribly, terribly wrong, please tell me! It would be greatly appreciated. Also, the same thing applies to the whole governmental setup of Konoha. I made up the HAB (which, by the way, stands for the Hokage Advisory Board, if you hadn't already figured it out). I hope the decree didn't sound too, um, bad. I'm sorry if it did. But I hope I got the whole point across. Oh, and if I got anything wrong with the kekkei genkai stuff, please tell me. (just putting this out there. I know that there are other kekkei genkai, but I felt that the sharingan and byakugan were the most powerful and well known. At least in Konoha).

Reading Maid, over and out.


	2. Coming Home

I don't own Naruto...

Chapter One: Coming Home

It would just so happen that, the day before Tsunade's meeting with Kokuzoku, three ninja from Konoha had been sent on a month long mission. Now, four weeks after Tsunade sent out the notice, said ninja crested a hill one mile from the gates of the village. Nothing could have prepared them for what they were about to see upon entering their beloved village.

"Alright!" Sixteen-year-old Naruto Uzamaki punched a fist into the air. "We made it!" He started dancing and jumping around on top of the hill. One of his flailing limbs managed to collide with a certain shadow master who was walking behind Naruto.

"Ah!" Shikamaru grunted when Naruto's fist smacked him in the nose, but left it at that, too tired to further the conflict. Besides. They were home. After a whole month, the three were home. Shikamaru let out an exhausted sigh as his dark eyes took in the village. His thoughts wondered to a certain blond kunoichi who he had missed more then he was willing to admit. _I wonder if she missed me…_

Neji Hyuuga, now seventeen, rolled his eyes when he saw the incident and stood next to Naruto, but not close enough to be smacked. He too looked at the village, at the high wall that protected its inhabitants from any outside danger, the forest surrounding it on all four sides. Using his byakugan, he saw the white, sprawling Hyuuga mansion. The Hokage's tower stuck up from the rest of the city, silver flags hanging from it gleaming in the morning sunlight.

_Wait…what are those flags? They weren't there before we left._

"Naruto, Shikamaru." The two turned to Neji.

"What?"

"Do you see those flags, over on the Hokage's tower?" Neji pointed.

Shikamaru and Naruto squinted, searching for said flags. "Oh yeah…I wonder what they're for?"

"I don't know and I don't really care! Let's just get going!" And with that, Naruto ran down the hill. Shikamaru exchanged a look with Neji, let out a sigh, and then the two ran after their friend.

* * *

Hinata let out a small sigh and leaned against the wall, her white eyes carrying a worried look. Neji, Naruto, and Shikamaru had been gone for a month now. When the three had left, the village had been normal, Tsunade had been Hokage, and everyone was free and generally happy. The village the three were returning too, however, was completely different.

It was because of the differences that Hinata stood where she was, waiting on the wall for the three. She would need to explain to them all of the changes that had been made. The last thing she wanted was for them to come home after so long a trip, only to be arrested upon entering and punished. She put a hand to her face, where a half-healed cut ran along the top of one eyebrow. The Chaita guards, now stationed all over the village, held back for no one.

The sixteen-year-old had been coming to the wall like this for the past few days, as Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto were supposed to return some time soon. She had started doing this alone, coming every spare minute she had. But her other friends, learning what she was doing, also joined her, so that there was at least one of the Konoha Twelve waiting for the boys all day long. All of them, whether they were particularly fond of the three or not, had enough of a heart to want to keep them from immediate reprimandment. And harsh punishment.

Hinata waited there for an hour. She started feeling sleepy and began to daydream.

_I wonder if Naruto has changed at all…_ The blond boy was never far from Hinata's thoughts, whether it be during training, or meal times, or when she lay awake at night in bed.

_I wonder if he missed me..._

Hinata missed Naruto desperately, but not as much as she guessed Ino did Shikamaru. The blond kunoichi would never admit it, but Hinata bet that Shikamaru appeared just as often in Ino's mind as Naruto did in hers. Through out his absence, Ino had become even more outgoing and snappy then before and, in the past two weeks, had taken to resting under his favorite tree, gazing up at the clouds.

But Ino and Hinata were not the only two who were missing someone. The Hyuuga mansion just did not feel the same without the cold and quiet Neji around. Hinata missed her cousin, but a certain weapons mistress missed him more. Tenten was going through some sort of Neji withdrawal. At first, Tenten had joked about finally being able to sleep in instead of getting up for training. And she had done just that. At least, for the first few days. Then she started getting restless, doing extra training by herself, even getting up at the time she did with Neji to train alone. When she discovered that too much alone time made way for uncharacteristic daydreams about herself and a certain Hyuuga prodigy, Tenten searched for a substitute training partner. Needless to say, no one was quite up to Neji's par.

But, the girls had only half a mind to spare for the boys, as the recent, abrupt changes in government had occupied the other half. Ever since Tsunade's decree, distributed two days after the boys left, dramatic changes in the Konoha way of life had been made. Tsunade, once so forward with running Konoha, had slid into the background, leaving Lord Kokuzoku as Hokage in Second and in complete command. Soldiers wearing the Chaita Clan colors of silver and black had come to Konoha from their outer estates and were positioned all over the city, put there to enforce the new rules made by Kokuzoku. These rules ranged from very big and important to very small and insignificant. There were so many that Hinata had trouble keeping track of them.

A curfew had been issued in the past week, stating that all civilians had to be indoors by ten o'clock and that all ninja, after making sure no civilians were out, had to report to the assembly hall in Hokage tower. Kokuzoku would then talk them to for an indefinite amount of time before they were all sent home. Anyone found by the Chaita guards after curfew was punished. That was how Hinata had gathered her cut, having been caught two nights ago, waiting for the boys. She was more careful now, though, as were the other watchers.

She was not the only one of the Twelve to be punished. During the first week of the Chaita soldiers' stay, Kiba had made some snide remark to one of them after they told him off about letting Akamaru walk freely. Kiba's broken wrist was in a cast for three weeks, only having been removed yesterday. Tenten, out training early in the morning, had been caught and reprimanded. She walked with a limp for the rest of the week and her lower lip was slightly swollen.

_I could never let something like that happen to Naruto, or Neji, or Shikamaru._ Thinking of the three, she looked out over the wall again, using her byakugan to scan the trees more closely. She took a sharp breath, focusing her eyes on a spot several hundred yards away from the gate. _Is that…yes! They're back!_

Hinata turned and ran along the wall, then jumped down to land gracefully in front of the gates. There were not enough Chaita guards to post everywhere, so instead two of Konoha's ninja were watching these back gates tonight. Both stiffened, raising their weapons, but then they recognized Hinata and relaxed.

"You scared us, Lady Hinata." The older guard leaned back against the wall.

"What are you doing out so late, Hinata?" The younger guard, whose name was Tyron, asked Hinata, running a hand through his flippy red hair. Hinata and several of the other Twelve knew Tyron from around the village. He was two years ahead of them age wise, and he was often sent on missions with them. Before she discovered her feelings for Shikamaru, Ino had had quite a crush on Tyron. Maybe that was why Shikamaru never fostered a friendship with the redhead…

Hinata smiled shyly at the two before she said, excitedly, "Shikamaru, Neji, and Naruto are home! I just saw them from up on top."

"Really?" Tyron closed his eyes, feeling for the three's chakra. "Oh yeah! Here they come."

At that moment, Naruto's voice could be heard from right outside the gate. "HEY! OPEN UP!! IT'S NARUTO UZAMAKI, HERE, BACK FROM HIS MISSION!! HEY! COME ON OPEN UP!! OW!"

Two low voices could be heard also. Hinata used her byakugan to see through the gate and saw Shikamaru bop Naruto on the head. Neji was looking through the gates with his byakugan and saw Hinata looking at them. He said something to Naruto, who was sitting on the ground, yelling at Shikamaru. Hinata saw her name form on her cousin's lips. Naruto stopped yelling and looked up at Neji, then looked at the gate. Hinata felt her stomach flutter.

"Can you open the gates?" Hinata asked.

The older guard and Tyron slid the bar off and pushed open one of the gates. The three boys squeezed through the opening, which was barely big enough for a child, let alone two sixteen year olds and a seventeen year old. But those gates were heavy!

"Hinata! What are you doing here?" Naruto asked, looking a little confused, but not looking unhappy to see her.

"I was waiting for you guys to come back." She smiled and blushed a little.

"Why? Is something wrong?" Neji noticed that although his cousin was happy to see the three, there was something that was bothering her. Then he noticed the cut on her eye. So did Naruto.

"Hey, what happened to your eye, Hinata?" Naruto looked at the girl before him, concern in his eyes.

"Oh, well, that's why I came to meet you." The heiress' expression changed to one of nerves and unease. "You see, there have been some changes, while you were gone."

The gate closed with a loud thud. Tyron came up to stand with the four, looking surprised. "Wait, they don't know what happened?"

Shikamaru looked from Tyron to Hinata. "Why, what did we miss?"

All three boys looked at Hinata, obviously confused.

"Well, Tsunade-." Tyron cut her off.

"Maybe you should tell them on the road, Hinata. The Chaita guards will be coming soon to take over for us, and they'll probably wonder why you're here. And the meeting is starting in fifteen minutes."

Hinata gasped. "Really? Thanks, Tyron." To her year mates and cousin, she said, "Come on, I'll tell you as we walk."

The four started off down the road. Hinata told the other three what had been happening over the last four weeks, talking more than Naruto had ever heard her at one time. They listened intently, not really believing what they were hearing. When Hinata finished, there was a stunned silence.

"So you're telling us," Naruto said, as though restating it for himself, "That for some reason, Tsunade decided to give the head of some powerful clan power over the entire village and that he has been changing all the rules and that his ninja are all over the city, physically punishing people for not listening to the rules, or just because they _feel_ like it? And they're the ones who gave you that cut?"

Hinata nodded. They emerged from the trees. Below them lay the urban part of the village. The Hokage's Tower, adorned with silver flags, was clearly visible from their position.

"Well that's complete-."

Neji, Shikamaru, and Hinata all sensed the presence around them at the same time. They reached for their weapons immediately, but before they could even touch their holsters, they were surrounded by ten Chaita ninja, all with spears pointing right at the four. And none of the ninja looked afraid to use them.

* * *

Well, that was chapter two! I'm sorry it took so long to update, those of you who actually read the first chapter. Not that many people did, but I don't care! Even if no one likes this fic, I'll continue writing it, just for me, because I want to. I have really good ideas for later on, it's just taking a while to get to them. I can't really do the exciting parts if there's nothing leading up to them, can I? Or if there's no plot!? It just doesn't work that way.

Actually, several people did take the time to review, and I thank them right now!

**Hugs and Blackberries, Someone I don't know, and Tenten Hyugga**, you guys are the BEST!! You each deserve a huge, ice cream sundae.

Now, about the actual story. It took me forever to actually figure out how to continue, but eventually I got it! For anyone who is confused at all, I'll try and make everything clear later on. There was more romance in this chapter, but there's plenty more to come, as well as lots of action and other amazing stuff so PLEASE continue reading. I like writing about Hinata a lot, so she's gonna be kind of big. But more people will come in, and the story will be told from many different people. So if your favorite character isn't here yet, most likely they will make an appearance (except if it's an akatsuki member, or some obscure character. It'll be pretty much the Konoha Twelve, some senseis, and maybe the sand sibs. I haven't decided yet.)

So, please review, review, review! They are greatly appreciated!

Reading Maid, over and out


	3. Crime and Punishment

Chapter Two: Crimes and Punishment

Tenten looked around the meeting hall, brown eyes wide with worry. _Where's Hinata? The meeting started ten minutes ago and she's still not here._ A leaden feeling came into the seventeen year old's stomach. _I hope she wasn't caught!_

She scanned the room again, just to make sure that the blue haired heiress really was not there.

Standing in front of the room on a raised stage stood Kokuzoku's grandson, Denkou, flanked by two Chaita guards, talking about a new rule involving the way the civilians' lives were run. Some nonsense about making their lives more structured and stricter, not allowing so much freedom, and more of an overall movement for success. Tenten thought it was a load of crap. Kokuzoku was sitting in a throne-like chair behind the boy, watching the crowd through his cold, harsh eyes.

The girl's warm, loving eyes, which were almost a foil to Kokuzoku's, moved from the Hokage in Second and out into the crowd. She saw Shino's spiky black head in one row, Kiba's brown and Lee's black heads in another. Ino and Sakura sat to her left, Choji sitting on Ino's other side. Sasuke, she knew, was standing somewhere in the back. He was still upset that he had not been sent on the mission with Naruto, Neji, and Shikamaru, even though it had been assigned over a month ago. _Come on, you big baby, grow up. There will be plenty more missions for 'The Last Uchiha'._

Needless to say, Tenten was not a member of Sasuke's fan club, which was in fact still active in the community. Ino had retired, for reasons she kept private, and so had Sakura, even though Tenten knew the pink haired kunoichi still had feelings for the boy. Tenten suspected that part of the reasons behind Ino's retirement were her growing feelings for one Shikamaru Nara, who, at the time being, was somewhere in Fire country with Naruto and Neji.

_I wish they would hurry up and get back,_ she thought. She missed all of the boys, even though she was really only close with Neji. _I wonder if Neji thought about me at all while he was away. Probably not. He was probably concentrated on his mission. But that's Neji for you._ She pictured Neji's face, his pale skin, white eyes, and dark hair. She pictured him fighting off loads of enemy ninja, his hands moving almost too fast for the eye to see. She pictured his intense eyes as he preformed his sixty four palms attack. She pictured him kissing her, eyes closed…

_Whoa, there!_ The picture froze. _That's never going to happen. What's wrong with me?_ She gave herself a mental slap, the image disappeared, and she returned to scanning the hall.

Gai, Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi, Anko, Iruka, and the other jonin were all together on one side of the room. They were all listening attentively, but not, as it appeared, because they believed what Kokuzoku's grandson was saying. All showed mild signs of disgust or irritation as the Chaita lord's evil words wound their way through the air. Well, all except for Kakashi, who was not listening at all and was instead deeply engrossed in his book, completely oblivious to the outside world.

_I would have thought that he would want to avoid getting in any more trouble, _Tenten thought, remembering with vivid detail the first of the evening meetings. Kakashi had been late, since being late came almost as naturally to him as breathing. Both Kokuzoku and Tsunade attended that meeting. Kokuzoku's men had reprimanded him and he was given ten lashes on the spot, up on the stage in front of everyone. Everyone looked at Tsunade, expecting her to intervene, but she did nothing. All the Hokage did was sit in her chair and watch the punishment, her eyes oddly steely. She did not utter one word.

Needless to say, no one had been late after that. Not even Kakashi. Tenten suspected, however, that Anko was largely responsible for Kakashi's early arrivals. The look in the woman's eyes as Kakashi was whipped only certified Tenten's suspicions about the jonin's feelings for the copy-ninja.

But the idea of sweet Hinata receiving ten lashes for lateness made Tenten sick. She would not stand by and let her best friend be whipped, of course. She just wondered what her own punishment would be if she protested. So far, no one had stepped up and objected to Tsunade's stepping back, or Kokuzoku's mad power craze. Most people thought, at least at first, that it was just a phase that would blow over soon and things would return to the way they were. When it became evident that the change was not temporary, mutterings started, but those and all other signs of discontent or anger directed at the leaders were crushed by the Chaita soldiers, commonly know as the Silver backs, or just plain Chaitas.

Speaking of Chaitas…

The back doors to the hall banged open and a group of people entered, ten with spears, the other four clearly under some sort of arrest. Heads turned and a wave of whispers engulfed the crowd. The Konoha Twelve's teachers looked over. Upon seeing whom the Chaitas were guarding, Kurenai stood up slightly, mouth opening. Asuma's mouth, too, sagged as Gai sat up straighter in his chair, his massive eyebrows clicking together. Kakashi looked up from his book, looked back down, then did a double take, eye widening a bit.

Tenten felt the lead weight get heavier in her stomach. _Hinata…and Neji!_

Ino's hand shot out and grabbed Sakura's arm. "They're home!" She whispered fiercely, eyes bright. She seemed not to have noticed that they boys and Hinata were being guarded.

"But why are they being brought in like prisoners?" Sakura asked, looking over at the group.

Ino whipped back around, staring fixedly at her dark haired shadow master. She then realized the state of which the boys were returning and a shadow darkened her face. _What the hell?_

When the group reached the front of the hall, the leader of the squad of Chaitas stepped forward. Kokuzoku, who had stood and taken his grandson's place, said loudly, "What is this? Who are these ninja?"

"My Lord," the leader said with a bow, "They were found coming into the village from the north gate. They-."

"My Lord, if I may speak." Asuma rose to his feet, also bowing slightly to Kokuzoku. The Lord turned to Asuma, who continued. "These ninja were sent on a mission about a month ago. They are just now returning and do not know the rules. Please-."

Kokuzoku turned away from the jonin as a small secretary came running over to him, a sheaf of papers in his hands. He and the Lord talked quietly, the little man pointing at something on the paper. After a minute, Kokuzoku looked up.

"It says here that the only three on that mission were Neji Hyuuga, Naruto Uzamaki, and Shikamaru Nara. There is nothing here about a fourth ninja." He looked with his cold eyes upon Hinata, whose hands started to shake.

Tenten, Ino, and Sakura all tensed. Kurenai stood up fully, looking worried. All of the Konoha Twelve were looking at Hinata, mixed degrees of worry etched on their faces.

"Sir-," Asuma began, but was cut off.

"Silence." He looked down at his papers, then back up at the group. "Come forward," he told the group. "Guards, stand by."

The leader of the unit walked forward, with Neji, Shikamaru, Naruto, and Hinata walking behind him. The others dropped back. Kokuzoku leaned forward, staring at Hinata.

"What's your name, girl?"

Hinata hesitated, and when she spoke, the stutter that she had conquered several years ago returned to her speech, as it often did when she was nervous. "H-hinata H-Hyuuga, my Lord."

"Miss Hyuuga, you do know the rules about being tardy, don't you?"

"Y-yes, s-sir." She stared down at the ground.

"Do you know the punishment?"

Hinata nodded slowly. Shikamaru, Neji, and Naruto all exchanged a look.

_What's the big deal? It's just a stupid meeting, how bad can the punishment be?_ thought Naruto.

Neji and Shikamaru were wondering the same thing. One dark pair of eyes and one white scanned the crowd, reading the peoples' faces. Every face held some sign of fear.

_How bad __is__ this punishment?_ Shikamaru thought, looking carefully at his sensei. All of the jonin were looking with apprehensive expressions at the group. Kurenai was on her feet, a look of horror on her face.

"And yet you willingly chose to be late for this meeting in order to meet this group of ninja?"

"Y-y-yes, s-sir." The blue haired kunoichi's knees started to shake as she concentrated with all of her might on her shoes.

Kokuzoku stared at her for a minute, his cold features unreadable. The tension in the crowd of ninja was so thick, you could cut it with a knife. Hinata was a very well liked ninja, having made many friends in the village, whether she realized it or not. No one in the crowd wanted to see gentle Hinata Hyuuga receive the same punishment as Kakashi.

After a minute that felt like an eternity, Kokuzoku spoke. "Do you feel that you are an important person, Miss Hyuuga?"

Hinata looked up at him, confused. "M-m-my L-lord, I-I do n-not u-un-d-derst-tand-d…" Her voice died away as her gaze met with his. She quickly looked away again, shivers running down her spine.

Kokuzoku continued. "Do you feel that, just because you are of Hyuuga blood, the rules of this village do not apply to you?"

"N-n-o, s-sir, I-."

"Good. Because you are just like every other person in this village, have you a powerful kekkei genkai or not. Be you of Hyuuga descent or not. Be you ninja or not. You are just an average person with nothing special about them. There is nothing that makes you any different from any other ninja in this room. You are just one of many, anyone else would be punished for lateness."

Kokuzoku's gaze shifted from the cowering girl in front of him to the squad leader. "Ten lashes. Do it outside."

_No!_ Tenten rose to her feet. Kurenai gasped and would have run forward, but Asuma stopped her. Ino and Sakura's hands flew to their mouths. Shino stiffened under his coat and Kiba also rose to his feet, he and Akamaru growling. Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto were shocked, eyes wide.

_Ten lashes? As in with a whip?_ Shikamaru thought in horror.

The man nodded and stepped toward Hinata. But someone else stepped forward. Two someones, actually. In two quick steps, Neji placed himself between the Chaita and Hinata. The Hyuuga gave the man his death glare, as though daring him to come one step closer to his cousin. If he did, the man would find breathing, and maybe walking, harder to do then it had been before.

Naruto, seeing where Neji moved, took one solid step toward Lord Kokuzoku. He glared up at the old man with his fierce blue eyes. "Hey, Lord What's your face, listen up!"

A gasp went through the crowd. Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke all, without looking at each other, hit themselves on the forehead and thought, at the same time, _Naruto…_

Denkou and Raikou both stiffened, Denkou's hand moving to his sword hilt.

Shikamaru put a hand over his face, thinking, _If anything could make this situation worse, that was it. How troublesome…_

Kokuzoku stared at Naruto with a death glare that could rival Neji's. Naruto, however, ignored it and continued talking.

"I don't really know who you are, and I still don't really get how you became in charge of things, but I know one thing, and that's that you're wrong!" Naruto pointed at Hinata. "Hinata has never done anything wrong. She's a nice, sweet, quiet person who is a model of what a shinobi should be! Sure, she's kind of weird, but that doesn't matter! She's the kind of person you never need to punish because there's nothing to punish her for!" He swiveled his finger from the shocked and speechless Hinata to Kokuzoku.

Naruto was angrier then he had been in a long time. And at the same time, a kind of horror was filling him up, fighting with the anger for domination. But in the end, anger won. "Now, you listen to me. I don't really care who you are, or how powerful you may be, but you can not punish Hinata for something as stupid as being late for some stupid meeting!!"

Silence filled the hall after Naruto's outburst. Kokuzoku stared down at Naruto, looking thoughtful. Finally, he said, "What is your name, boy?"

Naruto jabbed his thumb into his chest. "Naruto Uzamaki!"

Kokuzoku looked coolly down at him. "I don't like you very much, Naruto Uzamaki." He turned to the leader. "Leave the girl. Take this boy outside and give him twenty."

Hinata gasped, horrified at what was happening. "Naruto, don't-."

Neji and Shikamaru moved to stop the man, but then the rest of the squad that had brought them in appeared out of nowhere, surrounding them. Naruto was brought outside by two guards. He refused to be dragged and walked purposefully forward, chin held high and blue eyes blazing. The rest of the crowd was in an uproar. Kokuzoku banged on the podium. Silence fell.

"Meeting dismissed." The Chaita began ushering everyone out of the hall, clearing it out. Kokuzoku watched for a second, then his gaze returned to the three ninja still standing in front of him.

He ignored the boy with the black ponytail, seeing him as nothing more than a normal ninja. Instead, the man focused on the two Hyuuga teens, one staring after the blond with wide, white eyes, the other glaring up at him with an identical pair of orbs, darkened with anger. After a second, the remaining Chaitas ushered them away. Kokuzoku watched them go, thinking.

_This Hyuuga clan, they are proving to be a problem. _In secret, Hiashi Hyuuga had been to see Tsunade, asking her about her decisions and questioning her behavior. He was getting suspicious. And this was the second time that the girl had been caught breaking rules, the first time having been several nights ago. And the boy…Kokuzoku thought he looked like trouble. _Such an aura of power around them both, especially the boy. And those eyes…_

Somehow, Kokuzoku would have to deal with the Hyuuga clan. What to do…what to do…

Whoa, chapter two! This was kind of long…cool!

I got a much more satisfying reaction to chapter two than chapter one. Prologues are ever so important, and yet more often then not are not as interesting as the actual story. But now I'm full swing into this story. I'M SO EXCITED!!

As I said before, I'll focus on different people as we go.

And now, for those amazing people who reviewed!

Three cheers for **AKITO. At the Disco**,** The Elven-Spear**,** Foxtriller**,** Dana**,** and that same kid from before**! You guys all get some Chinese rice candy! (the stuff that you can eat the wrapper too)(I love that stuff!)

Until next time!! Reading Maid, over and out.


	4. Aftermath of a Very Unpleasant Meeting

Chapter Three: The Aftermath of a Very Unpleasant Meeting

Ino, Sakura, Tenten, and Choji, after the meeting had ended with such a horrifying twist, were ushered outside with the rest of the Konoha ninja. Sakura was wearing a look of shock, brought about from what happened to Hinata, and from Naruto's sudden punishment. Her thoughts were stuck on the blond who, even at this very moment, was having his back ripped apart by a leather cord.

_What a way to come home,_ she thought, shuddering at the idea of her cheerful teammate being punished by Kokuzoku. _I can't believe that just happened._ The pink-haired kunoichi was shocked into silence. The other blonde standing next to her, however, was not.

"I can't believe that jackass would do such a thing! And not only to Hinata, but Naruto too! I just can't believe it!"

Ino's eyes were blazing and her fists were clenched. She liked Hinata a lot and, even though they were both sixteen, looked upon her almost as a little sister. The fact that the evil Chaita beast could even consider doing such a thing to sweet, gentle Hinata blew Ino's mind away and fueled her temper. And even though she wasn't particularly close to Naruto, Ino still _liked_ him! If anyone in Konoha deserved to be whipped, it certainly was not the blond boy who had protected Hinata.

"KOKUZOKU IS SUCH A-!" Ino began in a loud, carrying voice.

Choji, Sakura, and Tenten all threw their hands over her mouth, looking around wildly for any Chaita guards.

"Ino, are you crazy?!" Choji hissed, relaxing only slightly when he saw none of the silver clothed ninja. Ino's face darkened and she glared at her teammate. Choji ignored her and continued, "You can't say things like that in public!"

"Yeah, judging by what went on in there, you might get beheaded," a familiar voice drawled from behind them.

The girls and Choji turned to see…

"Shikamaru!" Choji and Ino's faces broke into smiles at the sight of their teammate, who shoved his hands into his pockets and looked around, dark eyes lazily surveying the crowd.

Ino pushed her friends' hands away and hugged the shadow ninja, causing a small blush to appear on his cheeks. He stiffened and mumbled something about women, causing Ino to break off their hug and scold him. Choji nodded a greeting to his friend, who was ignoring Ino's nagging, a happy feeling rising inside the chubby ninja. _Now that he's back, maybe he'll figure out what's going on with Tsunade and Kokuzoku, _Choji thought. Everything seemed just a little less hopeless when the genius was around. At least to Choji. And to Ino, too, but she would never admit it.

Tenten and Sakura watched as Team Ten reunited, both giving small smiles. But Sakura noticed that Tenten's smile grew just a bit bigger when she saw Neji and Hinata emerge from behind Shikamaru, Hinata looking worried, Neji looking…well, Sakura wasn't sure. But Tenten, who could read the Hyuuga prodigy better then anyone else, knew that Neji was feeling angry, and, to her surprise, a little shaken.

"Hey, Neji, welcome back!" Tenten smiled a greeting at her teammate. The urge to suddenly go and hug the boy rose in Tenten, but she suppressed it, letting the feelings of happiness rise instead.

Neji nodded at Tenten, the ghost of a smile appearing on his pale face. "Tenten." He paused, then looked as though he was going to say something else when…

"Neji, my comrade, welcome home!" Rock Lee's outward appearance had not changed much as he grew older, the boy only becoming taller and more muscular. Inside, he was still the same energetic, happy, determined guy. He came bursting out of the crowd and threw his arms sideways around Neji's shoulders, hugging him tightly while exclaiming his joy.

"I have not seen you for over a month, my friendly rival, how are you?! It is a shame that you had to return to our wonderful village while it is in such a confusing and different state than usual!"

"Lee," Neji said, slightly out of breath, as Lee's muscular arms (which were wrapped tightly around Neji's shoulders and chest) were making it more difficult for the Hyuuga to breath.

"But I am sure that with you back in our home, we will be able to fix the many problems that have arisen during your very long absence!"

"Lee," gasped Neji in a slightly more urgent tone. His pale face took on a bluish tinge.

"I have tried to figure out what we could do, during the time you were gone, but my brain could not think of anything! Even our teacher Gai-sensei, when I approached him about a plan, said that we should-."

"Lee!"

During the short squabble that ensued, Tenten turned from her teammates to Hinata. The feelings of worry that had temporarily left the girl now returned in full strength. After resisting the urge for Neji, Tenten found it impossible to do for Hinata. Tenten hugged her friend quickly, feeling the younger girl shaking with suppressed anxiety. Hinata hugged her back.

"How are you?" They broke their hug and Hinata looked down.

"I-I'm fine. I'm just worried about Naruto." Hinata spoke slowly, fighting to keep her stutter under control. But the emotion in her voice was not making it an easy battle. "The only r-reason he's getting punished now is b-because I didn't think enough about how we were going to get them back-."

"Hinata," Tenten began.

"And then I wasn't s-strong enough to defend myself and h-he had t-to do it f-for m-me. And-."

"Hinata!"

Hinata stopped talking, finally meeting her best friend's eyes.

Tenten put her hands firmly on the other girl's shoulders. "Hinata, it's not your fault! None of us thought about what we were going to do after we found them, it wasn't just you. We were all just concerned about getting to them before Kokuzoku's men did. And that's what we did."

Hinata looked away.

"And besides." Tenten looked up at the dark, starry sky, admiring the millions of stars above. "None of us could have guessed what would have happened tonight."

Hinata nodded slowly, but her face still showed her anxiety.

The group of teens fell silent. The ninja around them were slowly moving away from the meeting hall, off towards their own homes. Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru set off together, Ino and Choji bombarding Shikamaru with questions about his mission. Lee, after seeing Gai, said farewell to the remaining four and departed, leaving Neji, Hinata, Sakura, and Tenten together.

Now, Sakura and Hinata were gazing off towards the side of the building, worried looks on both of their faces. Tenten and Neji were silent, both lost in their own thoughts.

_They're both waiting for Naruto to come back,_ Tenten thought as she watched the two younger kunoichi. Neji, she knew, was waiting for Hinata. Looking around, she saw Sasuke standing a ways away, his eyes also fixed on the place where they guessed Naruto would emerge. Sakura also noticed this and she slowly made her way over to her teammate, leaving the two Hyuugas and Tenten.

"Hey, Hinata!" A voice called.

Tenten and Neji turned and saw Kiba and Akamaru running towards them, Shino walking along behind. Hinata did not seem to hear them, so Tenten touched her shoulder lightly. She came out of her daze with a start, looking around, slightly confused. The Hyuuga then saw her teammates and her expression became slightly less anxious.

Akamaru arrived first and nuzzled his nose into one of Hinata's hands, which hung limply by her side, wagging his tail ferociously. "Hey, are you okay?" Kiba arrived next, looking down at Hinata, his eyes worried.

The girl nodded slowly. "Y-yeah, I…" Her voice died away. Her large, white eyes were glued to the side of the building, a look of horror rising in their snowy interior. The others turned in the direction of Hinata's gaze. Tenten's mouth fell open and Kiba let out a shocked curse.

Naruto had emerged from behind the building. The top of his orange suit had been pulled down and his black t-shirt ripped from the back. It now hung in bloody tatters from his tanned shoulders and arms, exposing his entire back. His back was, in turn, a bloody mess: an intricate pattern of cuts and welts, the cuts from the whip still open and bleeding sluggishly. He looked considerably more tired and pained than when he had left the meeting room, but that look of fierce determination still showed on his face.

Sakura gave an audible gasp and she and Sasuke stepped forward. When they reached him, Sakura said something, to which Naruto gave a quick answer before he slumped forward. Sasuke caught him and the three walked slowly in the direction of Naruto's apartment, Naruto's arm slung over Sasuke's shoulder while the Uchiha supported most of his weight.

Tenten watched the three friends walk away, thinking about the three younger ninja, but was brought back to her current situation when she heard Hinata stifle a small sob. She turned to her blue-haired friend, ready to comfort, but Kiba beat her to it.

After holding in her tears, Hinata let go and was soon crying into her old friend's shoulder, hugging him tightly. Kiba held her to him, resting his chin on Hinata's head. Akamaru whimpered and nuzzled into the girl's hip, his tail down between his legs. Shino stood next to them, comforting Hinata in his own way.

Kurenai appeared out of the thinning crowd of ninja. When she saw her team, the jonin's red eyes widened, her mouth falling slightly open. Then her eyes became glassy and she said, "Oh, Hinata…" Two steps forward and she wrapped her arms around Hinata on the opposite side of Kiba, talking quietly to Hinata, soothing her.

Tenten and Neji exchanged a look, both stepping back.

"They've got this under control," Tenten said quietly. Neji nodded. The two walked away, headed in the general direction of their houses, leaving Hinata to the comfort of her own team.

…

…

…

When Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto arrived at Naruto's apartment, Sakura set about the task of cleaning up Naruto's cuts. Seated on the bed, the medic-nin first wiped up the blood, then worked on the lacerations themselves, although many were already beginning to heal. Sasuke, leaning against the wall, watched Sakura work through his dark, grey eyes. The room was silent apart from the sloshing of the water as Sakura dipped her rag into the small bowl.

Then, after several minutes, Naruto spoke.

"Did you guys see Hinata afterwards?"

Sasuke and Sakura exchanged a look. Then Sakura said, "Yeah, she was standing with Tenten and Neji and me. Then I went with Sasuke." Sakura paused, revisiting the scene outside the meeting hall. "She looked really upset…" the kunoichi finally said, pausing in her work, green eyes unfocused.

When Sakura did not continue, Sasuke took up the tale. "She missed you, dobe."

Naruto's head shot up, wide eyes staring at his rival/best friend. "What?"

"Yeah, Naruto, she missed you a lot." Sakura resumed the talking, also returning to her rag and water. "She didn't make it obvious, but anyone close to her could tell."

Naruto didn't say anything. He stared at the floor, a distant look in his clear, blue eyes. Sakura finished in silence and Sasuke did not say anything else.

"Well, Naruto." Several minutes later, Sakura stood and brushed off her skirt, thinking how lucky she was that Sasuke had not been sent on that mission. She stole a glance at the Uchiha teen, then looked away, picking up the bowl and rag.

She looked at Nartuo and said, "I'm sorry you had to come home like this. Tomorrow we'll explain everything that happened while you were gone. But now, you need to rest."

Sakura bent down and gave Naruto a hug, careful not to irritate his back. "We missed you."

…

…

…

Neji and Tenten walked along in silence, the road empty apart for the two. When they reached the intersection in the road, they halted. There was a silence, both just listening to the sounds of the night. Then Neji broke it.

"So. Training tomorrow? Or has that Chaita lord made a rule against that, too?"

Tenten grinned broadly. "Thank goodness he hasn't!" She pulled out a kunai and began twirling it on one finger. "Yeah, we can train, we just have to be careful about where we do it." She remembered that time when, while Neji was away, she went out to run around the border of the village. Not a good idea._ Man, those Chaita can really pack a punch._ But she did not tell Neji; the last thing she wanted was for him to think she was getting soft.

Her gaze shifted so that she was looking at her partner. "I trained while you were away. Or, I _tried_ to train. But, believe it or not, it was hard to find someone who gave me the same workout as you."

Neji chuckled. It was only for a second, for the teen quickly stifled it, but it was there. Tenten's smile broadened and she stepped in front of Neji.

"Did you just laugh?" A triumphant smirk spread across her face.

At this accusation the Hyuuga's face straightened immediately.

Tenten smiled, her eyes glinting evilly. "You, Neji Hyuuga, just laughed and you know it. Don't deny it!"

The Hyuuga managed to rid himself of the smile, even as Tenten waggled a finger in his face. "Training, tomorrow at the usual time."

He walked away down the road, leaving Tenten standing at the crossroads, still smiling widely. She watched him until his white shirt was no longer visible in the oncoming fog, and she herself was surrounded by it. Turning, she walked along her own road, humming to herself and twirling a kunai.

Tenten stared up at the sky, a small flock of butterflies moving into her stomach. _He actually __laughed._

She jumped into the air and did a swift cartwheel, letting some of her happiness out. Enjoying the feeling, she cartwheeled all the way down to her apartment, her happiness never ebbing.

…

…

…

That night, Naruto lay in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Despite the fact that he was exhausted from his mission, he could not sleep. His mind would not turn off, continually replaying the scene from the meeting. Naruto repeatedly saw Hinata's scared, anxious face, Kokuzoku's cold, cold blue eyes glaring down at her, the anger that had bubbled up inside of him, and then the look of horror that had appeared on the heiress' face when his punishment had been proclaimed.

_Why do I keep thinking about Hinata?_ he thought, hands folded behind his head._ I like Sakura, don't I?_

He tossed and turned, finally falling into a restless sleep full of dreams involving whips, cherry blossoms, and butterflies.

…

…

…

In her bed on the other side of town, Hinata Hyuuga also lay awake, staring out her window at the starry sky above. Right then, she felt like the most pathetic person in the entire world. _Why am I so weak? I never seem to be able to defend my self._

Fresh tears started to fill her already red and puffy eyes.

_The only reason Naruto got hurt was because of me. I couldn't stand up to Kokuzoku at all. I just let him walk all over me, and all I could do was stutter!_

The tears clung to her lashes, threatening to pour free. _And then, after they let him go, all I did was cry. And make people worry._

Pictures of her friends' worried faces haunted Hinata's mind: Tenten, Kiba, Kurenai…Even Shino and Neji showed some signs of anxiety on her behalf.

The tears finally spilled, trickling down the heiress' pale cheeks.

_And why am I crying so much?!_

Hinata wiped them away angrily.

_Tears don't help anyone. And neither does sulking._

She ran her sleeve over her eyes, and when she drew away her eyes were dry.

_From now on, I'm not going to be weak. I'm going to become stronger. I'll never make anyone worry about me ever again._

A fiercely determined look came into her pale eyes. It closely resembled the look that a certain blond ninja had worn earlier that day.

_And someday, I'm going to protect Naruto. I'll never be a damsel in distress for him to come and save ever again._

She looked at the moon, admiring its pale beauty.

_I promise._

…

…

…

Lord Kokuzoku set his pen down, a look of smug contentment on his lined face. _There_, he thought, looking over what he had written. _This should take care of the Hyuuga clan. Their short interference in my plans for this village will end, tomorrow at sunset. And then I can continue with more important things._

He rang a small bell on his desk and a few seconds later, the door opened and Tsunade entered, accompanied by a guard. The guard bowed and left and, after closing the door, the woman sunk into a low bow of her own.

Kokuzoku smirked. "Come here, Tsunade. I need your signature on this paper."

_She, at least, has not been causing any trouble,_ the Hokage in Second thought as the actual Hokage came forward and put her name on the line Kokuzoku pointed to. Kokuzoku would have rid himself of the woman long ago, but the villagers needed to see her name on the new laws, and they also liked to see her in person from time to time. If they didn't, they would have rebelled long before this.

When she finished, Tsunade straightened and looked at the man sitting at her desk. "Is there anything else I can do, my lord?"

"No. Go back to your post."

Tsunade turned and left, going to the new chamber Kokuzoku had had built next to his office for her. After Hiashi Hyuuga had come and tried to reason with Tsunade, the Chaita lord had decided that it was not safe to allow the public access to their Hokage. Tsunade was kept in the small chamber next to his office until Kokuzoku needed her, be it for her signature or for a public event. Kokuzoku liked to constantly remind the citizens of Konoha just who was in charge.

_No one has actually challenged me yet. Except for the Hyuugas. But they will soon be gone. No need to waste a thought on them._

………………………………………..

Well, that was chapter three! I wrote this while I was on vacation, because it was too hectic to do it before. I'm still on vacation, and I'm posting this while I'm visiting someone, so please, forgive any last minute typos. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. Really sorry. But I didn't have any access to the internet myself, so I had to live off of the most random signal that came from one of the houses around me. So yeah. And now that I have a temporary permanent signal, I'm posting. So I'm so sorry!

I toyed around with several different perspectives in this story. Not actual perspectives, but focuses. This chapter kind of dragged a bit, but it will pick up soon.

I'm sorry if Hinata seemed a bit too weepy in this chapter, but don't worry! As she said in this chapter, she will be stronger and won't need protection! So just hold out.

I'm finding this story is a bit harder to write then my other ones. I have all the ideas, but it's harder to put them down on paper, and to figure out how to pick up each chapter. But I'm getting there.

Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed this chapter!

**Mintmelodygirl, Hyuugaheiresshinata, the elven-spear, **and **that cool kid**

You all get…um…I don't know. What do you want? For now, you can have a kitten and/or puppy. Or something.

To anyone else reading this story, please review! I would absolutely love it.

Thanks again! Reading Maid, over and out. (while on vacation!)

**Briefly edited again 10/11/09**


	5. A Perfectly Normal Day

Chapter Four: A Perfectly Normal Day

I don't own Naruto…

Chapter Four: A Perfectly Normal Day

When the sun rose on the Village Hidden in the Leaves, it cast its golden rays on many things. The lazy shadow ninja of Konoha was rudely awoken way too early when the sunlight blasted through the window he had forgotten to close. The blond female walking through the streets on her way to see the lazy boy beamed up at the sun as its rays shone off her long hair. The two's teammate was up and eating his breakfast outside his house, drinking in the glorious light as he munched on his cereal.

A few streets from the cereal ninja, a pink-haired girl opened her front door and shielded her emerald eyes from the blinding flash just as, several buildings away, a certain dark-haired boy did the same to his own onyx eyes.

On the other side of town, in a very secluded area of the forest, several rays of sun that had made their ways through the dense forest leaves gave light on a fierce practice battle occurring between two teens, a boy with long hair and a girl with buns in her hair. It glinted on the many weapons scattered through the clearing and on the headbands they both wore. In another section of forest, also very secluded, two males clad in green spandex were rigorously doing exercises, the sun bouncing off their shiny black bowl-cuts.

The sunlight sparked through another kunoichi's window, waking the blue-haired girl from a deep slumber. She sat up, stretched, and looked out her window, admiring the beauty of the sun and the pure, azure color of the sky. She smiled broadly, as both of those things, the yellowness of the sun and the blueness of the sky, reminded her strongly of…

"Naruto!" Sakura pounded loudly on the boy's door, her impatience growing. _I've been here for five minutes. Why isn't he answering!? _She pounded harder.

"NARUTO!"

"I'm coming!" The teen pulled his face out of the pillow and rolled onto his back. Not a good idea. "Ow!" He sat up quickly, wincing as the cuts on his back prickled with pain. Gingerly, he tossed aside the blankets and rose, walking stiffly over to the door. Opening it, he came fact to face with Sakura.

"Oh, hey, Sakura!" Naruto smiled his goofy smile, standing back from the doorway. "Why're you here?"

Sakura sighed in an annoyed sort of way as she walked in, Naruto closing the door behind her. "Don't you remember? I said I was going to explain all the changes that Kokuzoku made. I figured I should do it early, before you got the chance to do anything stupid."

Naruto sweat dropped. "Thanks." He then realized that he was still in his pajamas and nightcap.

"Uh," he said, a blush on his cheeks. "Can you hold on a sec?"

Naruto inched slowly back into his bedroom, closing the door behind him grinning uneasily. Sakura sighed again and sat down to wait.

* * *

_God, I've missed this. _Tenten sat down heavily against a tree, out of breath and sweating like a pig. Neji sat down next to her, not quite as out of breath and _definitely_ not sweating like a pig, but all the same showing some signs of weariness. _Now that I think about it_, Tenten though, guzzling down water, _how did I go for a month without this?_

"Tenten," Neji closed his eyes and put his head back against the tree. "You've slowed down while I was away."

The girl froze, her face going pink, then gave a rather uneasy laugh. "Y-yeah, I know. It's because I didn't' train as much."

Neji gave a small smirk.

"But it's not my fault!" She added quickly. "For one, it wasn't easy finding someone who trains as hard as you do to train with." Neji cocked an eyebrow but didn't' say anything. "_And_ I had to fit in training around all the stupid changes going on! You wouldn't believe how hard that was, especially since those Chaita guards are everywhere, punishing people for the most random things!"

Neji's slightly bemused expression changed to a serious one. He turned to face her. "Like what?"

Tenten paused. "They attacked Kiba for letting Akamaru pee in public, and they attacked Hinata because she was caught out after curfew. I saw them hurt Kurenai because her and Asuma's baby was crying too loudly. Then, when Asuma heard, he confronted them and got pounded. And then, for the first one of those meetings, Kakashi was late and he got whipped, just like Naruto."

Just remembering all of these incidents was getting Tenten more and more angry. She clenched her fists and continued, her voice stronger. "They beat up the ramen man because the Chaita soldier didn't like the soup he was given. And I-."

She stopped suddenly, her cheeks flushing. Neji's expression, which had been getting darker and darker as she spoke, darkened more. "You what? Did they punish you?" He said slowly, looking away from her.

_Damn! I wasn't gonna mention that!_

"Uh…"

_Don't look at his eyes, don't look at his eyes._ Tenten knew that, if she looked at the boy, she would have to tell.

Neji looked at her and, unwillingly, Tenten met his gaze. _Damn._

"Yes," she said softly, hating how weak she sounded. "But it was nothing big, don't-."

"What happened?"

Tenten couldn't not answer. "I went out to train one morning, and I didn't have a partner so I decided to run the perimeter. They didn't like that."

When she didn't continue, Neji decided that he didn't need to know more. They sat there in silence for a few more minutes before continuing sparring. Tenten was feeling slightly awkward and Neji…Neji was mad.

* * *

"So, Shika…what do you think of this?" Chouji asked, popping open another bag of chips and munching away. Ino sat up from her position under the tree and propped her head up on her arm, gazing intently down at the boy lying between her and Chouji.

"And don't say you haven't been thinking," she said threateningly. "I know that you started pondering this situation as soon as you entered the hall."

Shikamaru mentally cursed, thinking, _why does she know me so well?_

The lazy teen sighed and settled himself more comfortably between the roots. He closed his eyes. "How much do you two know about the Chaita clan?"

Ino and Chouji exchanged a look.

"Well…" Ino began, twiddling her thumbs as a small blush crept onto her cheeks. "Um…they…."

"They are a ninja clan from Konoha," Chouji said firmly.

"Yeah! That's it!" Ino nodded, agreeing with Chouji. "They're a ninja clan from Konoha."

Shikamaru sighed at the negligence of this teammates. "You don't know anything about them, do you?"

Chouji and Ino sweat dropped. "…No."

_How troublesome. Now I have to explain all of it._

"Yes, they are a ninja clan from Konoha," Shikamaru began. Ino and Chouji high-fived. Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "They're probably as old as the Hyuuga family, but their at least twice as big, probably more."

"If they're that big," Ino interrupted, "Then how come we've never seen them before? You'd think that their houses would be even bigger than the Hyuuga estates, and they take up a good part of the village!"

"Because they choose to live outside the wall, on their own estates. I've never seen it, but my dad says that it's huge. He only caught a glimpse of it one time on a mission, but it must have been pretty amazing for him to remember it.

"Anyway," Shikamaru continued. "They mainly keep to themselves, growing their own food and keeping their own trade lines and such. They don't even send their kids to the academy. They like to train themselves."

"Then they are actually ninja?"

"Obviously, since there are several hundred of them out in the city right now wearing headbands, if you haven't noticed."

"So do they go on missions?"

Shikamaru paused. "I've never seen one, have you?"

Both Ino and Chouji shook their heads.

"Well, that answers your question."

The two paused, then Ino opened her mouth again.

"And," Shikamaru said loudly, cutting Ino off. "Rumor has it that they're somehow related to the Hyuuga family, because it seems that they have a kekkei genkai similar to the Byakugan."

"Really!?" Ino and Chouji were shocked.

"I've heard that the Sharingan might be connected to the Byakugan," Chouji said, looking thoughtful. "But I've never heard of another one."

"Me neither," Ino said.

"Well, it's just a rumor. No one really knows for sure because those Chaita like to keep their secrets to themselves."

There was silence on the hill, Ino and Chouji thinking hard while Shikamaru went back to gazing skyward. After about a minute, Ino spoke again.

"Shika, have you heard anything about what the Chaita kekkei genkai _does_? If they actually have one?"

Shikamaru didn't reply, his brow furrowing slightly as he delved into the vast mountains of tidbit information lying around his mind. "I've heard," he began slowly, as though he was halfway to slumber land. "That if a Chaita and someone make eye contact, the Chaita can take over the other's mind…"

Silence.

"Excuse me?" Ino poked a finger in her ear. "Could you repeat that?"

Chouji looked like someone had smacked him in the face. Shikamaru sat stone still for a moment, his whole body having gone stiff. Then he sat bold upright, smacking himself in the forehead as he went.

"I'm such an idiot," he groaned.

Ino jumped to her feet. "Shika, do you think Asuma and the other sensei know about this? About taking over someone's mind!?"

"I don't know," he said, getting to his feet. Chouji followed suit, crumbling up the chip bag and stuffing it in his pocket. "Boy, this is gonna be troublesome…"

The three set off at a run, back towards the village to find Asuma.

* * *

"See him, Akamaru?" The teenage boy with the red tattoos on his cheeks pointed down the street at one of the Chaita ninja who was standing in front of Ichiraku, looking bored. "The one with the mustache?"

Akamaru gave a quiet yip, wagging his tail excitedly.

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Lee asked, looking concerned. "What if the man sees that it was you? You could get in big trouble!"

"After what those jerks did to Hinata last night, they deserve it!" Kiba exclaimed, clenching a fist.

"But-." Lee still looked worried. He peeked over the roof of the building they were standing on, scanning the streets for another glint of silver cloth. "What if there are more? What if they come after you?"

"We can take'em!" Hanabi Hyuuga, now twelve, punched a fist into her palm, an evil glint in her white eyes.

"Hell yeah!" Kiba and Hanabi high-fived.

Lee opened his mouth to try again, but Shino put a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head. "It's no use," he said.

Kiba laughed. "Yeah, old Shino's been trying to stop my hair-brained schemes for four years. He knows there's no point now."

Lee sighed in a defeated sort of way and sat back on the roof next to Shino, watching as Kiba and Hanabi peered over the edge again.

"Alright, it still looks clear." The two mischief-makers turned to the dog.

"Are you ready, boy?"

Lee decided to give one last try at stopping them. "Are you guys _positive_ that you want to do this?"

Hanabi, Kiba, and Akamaru all turned back to face him. The same evil glint was in all three pairs of eyes and the same wicked smile played on all three mouths.

Lee paled. "Well…I trust you! Good luck!" He gave them a weak thumbs up and smile, before turning to Shino and sighing heavily, putting his face between his knees. The bug ninja patted Lee on the back.

Turning her attention back to what was below them, Hanabi saw three people she recognized running down the street. "Hey," she said, tugging on Kiba's shirt. "Isn't that the Nara boy? And his friends…um…" she paused, drawing a blank on names.

Kiba turned and followed her gaze, then said, "Yeah! It's Shikamaru and Ino and Chouji." He watched them for a second. "I wonder what their hurry is?"

The three were scurrying down the crowded street as fast as they could, trying not to draw unwanted attention to themselves, but still trying to go at a quick pace.

Hanabi shrugged, obviously not caring. "Who cares? Let's just go already!"

"Hold on," Kiba said, still watching Team Ten's progress, holding a hand up to stop the girl. "We'll wait until they get out of the way."

* * *

As Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji left the street with Ichiraku on it, they paused, debating about which way to go.

"Where do you think he is?" Ino panted, looking around as though expecting to see a sign directing them in the right direction.

Chouji looked at his watch, then said, "He may still be at the academy, want-."

"ARGH! AHHH! YOU MANGY MUT, GET BACK HERE I'LL SKIN YOUR FUR RIGHT OFF YOUR DAMN BACK!!"

A roar of rage erupted from the street Team Ten had just departed from, followed by a series of barks and howls that could have been either human or dog.

Ino, Shika, and Chouji froze and whipped around, just in time to be bowled over by a large, white dog streaking out of the ally, a pair of torn silver pants held firmly in its teeth.

Lifting her head from the dirt, Ino sputtered, "Aka-," but was then knocked back down as a pantsless Chaita guard, charging after the animal, ran right over Ino's back, pushing her face back into the dirt.

"What the-." Shika lifted his head, only to be stepped on by…

"Kiba?" Chouji said, pushing himself up. A smaller someone with a sheet of black hair jumped lightly over his head and a sandal collided with the side of his face. "Ow!"

"Hanabi Kiba!" Someone else skidded to a halt right behind the dazed and confused Team Ten. "How could you be so thoughtless!?"

Ino Shikamaru, and Chouji were quickly pulled to their feet.

"L-lee!" Ino sputtered, spitting out dirt and wiping her mouth on her arm, smearing more dirt all over her lower face. "What are you doing here? And what the hell just happened!?"

"Kiba and Hanabi played a joke on one of the Chaita guards," Shino said, standing next to Lee and gazing off after Kiba, Hanabi, the guard, and Akamaru. At least…that's were his glasses were pointed. Shino continued, "Akamaru stole his pants."

Shika, Ino, and Chouji dusted themselves off, Ino grumbling angrily.

"I apologize for Kiba and Hanabi, my youthful friends, but Shino and myself must now go after them and hope that they were not reprimanded for their fun!" Lee waved, Shino nodded, and the two ran off in the direction of girl, boy, dog, and guard.

"Well!" Ino huffed, her face pink. "If that wasn't-."

"Sensei!" Chouji called, waving to someone behind Ino and Shikamaru. The two turned and saw Asuma waling out of one of the nearby shops, Kurenai and their baby right behind.

"Finally," Ino sighed, running over to their teacher. "Asuma-sensei! Sensei!"

Asuma looked up at his name and saw his team running towards him, all covered in dirt.

"What happened to you guys?" He asked in his slow rumble, a smirk playing at his lips. Kurenai smiled, but then the baby, a little girl named Maki, started to cry and attracted all the woman's attention.

Ino scowled at her teacher as the three came to a halt in front of the small family. "Don't laugh, sensei. We have something important to tell you."

Asuma's smile slid away. "What is it?" Kurenai looked up from feeding the baby, curiosity on her face.

Ino looked at Shikamaru, who sighed. "What do you know about the Chaita clan, sensei?"

"Well," Asuma said, thinking, "There's not really much _to_ know. They're pretty secretive, aren't they?"

Ino gave her teacher an exasperated look.

"They don't live in the village. They have land outside the wall. They school their children themselves…" Asuma could tell that this was not what his three students wanted to hear. "Okay, tell me what I should know about them."

"They have a kekkei genkai," Chouji said, folding his arms.

"So?" Asuma said. "Plenty of families have them-."

"It's an eye related kekkei genkai," Ino added, holding her teacher's gaze.

Asuma paused. "Like the Sharingan, or the Byakugan?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru drawled. "Know what it does?"

Asuma shook his head.

By now, Shikamaru was positive that he was right about the Chaitas' ability.

The teen met Asuma's eyes with his own, tapping a finger to his temple. "Mind control."

Silence.

"What?" Kurenai whispered, eyes wide.

"Are you sure, Shikamaru?" Asuma's hands fell limply to his sides and his cigarette fell from his suddenly lax lips.

Shikamaru nodded. "One hundred percent. I can show you the book."

The five people and baby stood there in silence. Then Chouji raised his nose to the air and sniffed. He frowned. "Do you guys smell smoke?"

* * *

Naruto sat on a hill, gazing down at this village through unfocused blue eyes. The teen had entered a kind of trance, thinking about what Hinata and Sakura had told him of the new regime, about the horrible meeting from the previous night, and about his confused feelings for one Hinata Hyuuga.

_Why hasn't anyone done anything?_ Naruto put his head in his hand and stared at the Hokage's tower, now home to Kokuzoku and many other Chaita officials. _Hasn't anyone tried to stop that jerk from taking over everything? I mean, he's just one guy, right?_

He clenched his fist. _He may be only one guy, _another voice in his head argued, _but he sure is an evil one. How could he have even __thought __of doing that to Hinata?_

The teen lay back, tearing his gaze from the village to gaze up at the sky, turning bright shades of orange and pink from the sunset. He lay there, thinking about all sorts of things and letting his mind wander.

_Well, if no one else is going to do anything, then I guess I will. I'll get that old geezer out of Tsunade's tower and back to wherever he came from. I don't care if he says that that old woman gave him permission, I know she would never do this to the village. There has to be some dirty dealing in there somewhere. _

Naruto gave a big yawn and stretched his back. _Sakura will help me. So will Sasuke…I think. Shikamaru will, if I can convince him to get off his lazy butt. And if he helps, Chouji and Ino might too. Dog boy should help too. Shino…um…uh…Bushy brows probably will. And that girl with the buns…Pompom? No…Tenten! Yeah, she might. And then Neji and Hinata…they probably will. _

Thinking of the two Hyuugas, Naruto sat up. His bright gaze searched the village until he saw the sprawl of white building that was the Hyuuga complex.

A pound of lead fell into his stomach. Naruto leapt to his feet, shock on his face, and took off down the hill as towers of smoke billowed from the Hyuuga estate and huge, orange flames danced across the horizon.

* * *

**8/7/08** Hello, everyone! I just realized yesterday that I had posted chapter 5 twice and 4 wasn't up here at all. AHHHHHHHHH!!

So I just posted it back up. I'm so sorry for everyone who was confused. I owe you all such apologies…I'm so sorry!!

**Thanks to all the reviewers for the last chapter! Rosepetals and Strife, Katako-Chan, The Elven-Spear, DanteHyuuga, kill the flamers, LittleKittyShaoMao, and Tensano Hyguuji.**

Reading Maid over and out!


	6. Hyuuga Burning

I don't own Naruto...

Chapter Five: Hyuuga Burning

"Get outta my way! Move! I said MOVE!" Naruto, fed up with people not listening to his panicked shouts, shoved a villager forcefully out of his path. Ignoring the angry shouts that followed him, Naruto pounded down the street, his heart racing as his mind was reeling.

_Gotta go faster. Gotta get to Neji and Hinata. Go __faster_

As he rounded a corner, Naruto looked skyward. The blue summer sky was slowly being blocked out by the copious amounts of smoke billowing up from the Hyuuga complex. This sight only made the blond ninja run all the faster. But it seemed that more people were noticing the smoke. People pointed to the sky, shouting, and started to run in the same direction as Naruto. His patience almost gone, Naruto gave a loud growl and leapt into the air, landing on a rooftop.

Finally having a clear path, Naruto took off with all the speed he could muster, leaping from building to building, drawing ever closer to the source of the smoke.

* * *

_Father, where are you?!_ Hinata could not open her mouth because of the smoke. Her eyes were stinging, she could not see, as she stumbled blindly down the smoke-filled hall to her father's rooms, praying that he would be there.

An enormous heat pressed her from all sides and the air was hazy from the flames. Smoke was steadily filling the halls of the building.

She turned and continued down the hall, bent double to keep her head from the heavy layer of black. Then, without warning, she ran into something that was not a wall. Stumbling back, she was caught by a pair of pale hands. Squinting through the smoke, she recognized her cousin.

"Neji!" She gasped, but before the boy could respond, a huge gout of flame erupted from a nearby room, blasting the door clean off. Hinata screamed as splinters and sparks hit her face and skin. Neji grabbed his cousin's wrist and pulled her back the way she had come. Hinata stopped him and sputtered, "W-wait! We c-can't leave father!"

The roar of the fire now consuming their home was so loud that they had to yell to communicate.

Hinata started to run back, but Neji stopped her and yelled, coughing, "He's not there!"

A piece of burning timber landed a few feet from them. Neji glanced away from Hinata towards the ceiling, looking for more possible fallers, his eyes straining. _I should be able to see right through this_, Neji thought_. Smoke has never been a problem for the Byakugan. _

Hinata rubbed her own pale eyes, yelling, "Why is the smoke affecting us so much?!"

They dodged another piece of the ceiling and crouched lower, both coughing.

"That's because it's not normal smoke!" Neji yelled. He now used his superior strength to half-drag Hinata back the way she had come. "It's some sort of justu! I can't figure it out!"

Above them, the ceiling moaned, and Neji looked up just in time to yell a hasty warning and push Hinata away. A burning log the size of Hinata herself snapped and landed with a crash between the cousins in an explosion of flame and timber.

"Ahhh!"

* * *

_Finally_! Naruto skidded to a halt on the last rooftop and hastily straightened, his blue eyes instantly analyzing the scene before him. One glance and the boy blanched, mouth falling open.

The sky behind the numerous white buildings of the Hyuuga was a bright orange and red, smoke still bellowing skywards while sparks and bits of ash were flying everywhere. A hot wind was not helping in subduing the fire, and it hit Naruto with a fierce blast as he came to a stop. Below him, people were hurrying from all directions, screaming and pointing at the enormous blaze coming from behind the large, white wall surrounding the entire Hyuuga estate. Or at least, what used to be a large white wall. It was now only a pile of rubble. Swarms of Chaita guards were surrounding the building, keeping villagers out, while many more could be seen inside, darting between the buildings and the fleeing Hyuugas.

When Naruto saw only Chaitas and Hyuugas in and immediately around the burning buildings, he thought angrily, _Why isn't anyone else helping put out the fire?! They're all just watching!_

About to leap off his rooftop perch, he froze. His blue eyes widened even more and his mouth fell open yet again, as confusion and then more anger boiled up inside him. On the far side of the mob, close to the gates, he saw a familiar green-clad ninja struggling with a Chaita.

* * *

"What are you doing?! Why do you stop us from going to our friend's aid?!" Rock Lee struggled against the Chaita guard who was holding him back and preventing him from rushing towards the burning building.

_I must get in there and help Neji! I must!_

"Get outta here! No one's allowed in! This is official business of the Hokage and the Hokage in Second!" The Chaita shoved the boy hard, pushing Lee back into the crowd.

"What _business_ are you talking about!?" Tenten shrieked, struggling against her own guard. Her hair was coming out of its buns and her voice was cracking as she fought ferociously against the man holding her back. "The whole thing is on fire! People could be stuck in there!"

"We have orders!" Barked the Chaita standing in front of the two struggling pairs, balling his fists. "Now shut up! Or I'll have you arrested for obstruction of government orders and treason against the Hokage!"

"Are you all insane!?" A few feet away from the struggling members of Team Gai were Kiba and Akamaru, Shino and Hanabi standing behind him. The dog boy was also struggling against a Chaita, his face dark with anger and looking more animal-like than usual.

All around, people were trying to get past the Chaitas and somehow help the Hyuugas, but no one was getting through. More and more Chaita were appearing out of nowhere and they were slowly pushing the gathering crowd back. Civilians and ninja alike were gathered at the gates to the Hyuuga complex, numbering so many that they filled up the entire street and trickled onto several other roads. Many civilian's angry screams and yells were drowned out by the continuous roar of the fire. The scorching air from the fire washed down upon the crowd, as did sparks and hot pieces of wood, which burned the watchers and nearby buildings.

* * *

Hanabi Hyuuga watched in horror as her home burned before her very eyes. _No…this can't be happening!_

Yet another white building succumbed to the fire raging within it and crumbled. The roar of the hungry flames devoured the screams from those trapped inside, but they still managed to reach the young girl's ears.

_No…No! NO!_

Recovering from the shock that had paralyzed her body, Hanabi rushed forward; the only thought in her mind was saving her family. But a hand grabbed her arm from behind, stopping her. Whipping around furiously, she glowered at Shino and yelled desperately,

"Let go! I have to go and help!" The raven-haired girl struggled against the bug ninja's grip, but Shino held firm.

"Hanabi," he said in his quiet and reasonable voice, "Listen to me-."

"Stop it! I have to help them!" Hanabi's voice cracked and she struggled harder then ever.

_What if father or Neji or Hinata are stuck somewhere? What if they're suffocating? Or burning? Or what if they're already __dead_

"The Chaita-."

"LET GO OF ME!" Hanabi at last wrenched her arm free of Shino's grip. She stepped away, but then felt a small pressure at the back of her neck and the next thing she knew, the world went black.

Kiba saw Hanabi crumple out of the corner of his eye and, thanks to his lightning quick reflexes, caught her limp form before she hit the ground. He turned an incredulous eye to Shino.

"What'd you do that for?!" He yelled, distracted from his forward struggle towards the fire.

"She was going to try and find Hinata and the others," came the almost inaudible reply from behind Shino's collar.

"But that's a good thing!" Kiba yelled. "That's what we're _trying_ to do!" Kiba didn't get why Shino had knocked Hanabi out. If the girl wanted to try and help her family, Kiba was all for it!

"Think about it," Shino said. "The Chaitas wouldn't be attacking the Hyuugas without a reason."

"Attacking?!" Kiba started. "They're not-."

"The Hyuugas are in trouble, and if Hanabi went and joined her family, she would be caught up in whatever's going on. It's better if she stays hidden."

Kiba looked at his friend curiously, not quite sure that he believed (or understood) what Shino was saying. _But has he ever been wrong about something like this?_

The dog boy thought.

_No. _

"Fine." The Inuzuka shifted the unconscious girl in his arms and gave her to Shino. "Go find someplace safe for her."

* * *

Tenten stumbled backwards as the Chaitas gave her a particularly hard shove. Falling back on a pair of civilians, she quickly apologized and righted herself.

_What on earth is wrong with these jerks?!_ _All we want to do is help, and they're stopping us?!_ She didn't know exactly why the silver ninjas were being so forceful about keeping people away from the blaze, but it seemed a bit over the top. That is, if they were trying to protect the watchers. But Tenten did know that she and Lee were not getting any closer to helping Neji and the other Hyuugas, despite their continuous efforts. More and more of the Byakugan bearers, including Lord Hiashi himself, had emerged from the burning buildings, coughing and scorched, but none of the two that Tenten really cared about. _Neji, Hinata, you better be all right!_

Konoha's weapons' mistress took a breath, drawing two kunai and preparing to force her way through to Neji, be it violent or not, when a huge crash from the opposite side of the semi-circle of onlookers drew her attention.

"Get out of my way, Chaita scum!" Her teacher, Maito Gai, sent a Chaita guard soaring through the air with one touch of his fist. The man landed in a heap thirty feet away, out-cold. Gai sent two more guards flying, then raced toward the fire. Behind him ran Kurenai, Kakashi, and Asuma, each knocking Chaita out of their way as they went.

"Tenten!" Lee moved to her side and he smiled in a determined and awestruck way as he said, "It would seem that our splendid ninja teachers have finally tired of listening to these intruders, and have at last decided to act!"

Tenten felt a warm glow fill her terrified stomach at the sight of the jonin completely bulldozing the Chaita guards. _Now, we'll be okay. _

Asuma slashed down two guards with his glowing trench knives, his expression fierce, before slamming both fists back and catching a pair of guards in the face. Tenten didn't even see what Kakashi did, but four motionless Chaita lay by his feet as he moved on to the next group. As those two held back the Chaita that were trying to stop them, Kurenai and Gai ran towards the fire, a determination as fierce as the fire itself burning on both faces.

* * *

Neji and Hinata blundered through hallway after hallway, room after room, searching in vain for a door, a window, anything that could get them out of this smoke and into the fresh air. The smoke seemed blacker than any Neji had ever seen, and heavier too. It clogged the lungs and burned the eyes, impairing both the pair's breathing and visibility.

_Why can't we find a way out? _Neji thought furiously, as they turned yet another corner and found another long stretch of hall. _We've lived here our whole lives, and yet everything looks different when it's on fire!_

Behind him, Hinata stopped running and bent over, coughing. Neji, realizing his cousin's sudden halt, froze and turned around. Coughs racked Hinata's thin frame as her smoke-strained eyes closed in pain.

"Come on! We have to get out of here now!" Neji did not mean to be impatient with Hinata. It was quite the opposite. He knew Hinata's lungs had never been strong, which was all the more reason for haste. He hoped Hinata knew that.

Hinata nodded and, still coughing, took a few steps forward.

Neji paused a second, thinking, then said, "Get on my back. You'll be closer to the smoke, but we'll go faster."

Hinata shook her head fiercely and straightened. "I'm-_cough-_fine­-_cough_!" She pushed Neji forward to prove her point.

Neji hesitated again, but nodded and said, "Fine." He grabbed her wrist, however, and they took off again, running faster than before.

* * *

Having jumped down into the crowd, Naruto now pushed his way through, aiming towards the entrance. He reached the front of the crowd just in time to see the sensei charge, Asuma and Kakashi holding back the Chaita while Kurenai and Gai (sensei of the two missing cousins) raced towards the gate. Naruto felt a swell of pride in his teachers when he saw them and was in turn inspired to act as well. But once again, he froze mid leap, eyes wide.

Out of nowhere, two silver and blue blurs appeared, right in front of the two charging teachers.

"Gah!" Kurenai gasped and skidded to a halt, stopping several inches from the cold, sneering face of Raikou, granddaughter of the Hokage in Second. As the young woman's sneer widened, she jabbed Kurenai in the stomach, sending the older woman flying backwards into Asuma. The man turned just in time to be knocked over backwards, his wife on top of him.

Gai did not plan on stopping for the young man who appeared in front of him, but it turned out he did not have a choice. With a display of strength that did not match his slender form, Denkou first stopped the spandex-clad man and then, without so much as a grunt of exertion, sent Gai flying towards the other jonin.

"Gai!" Kakashi turned and cushioned his rival's fall, barely containing his shock in the man's easy succumbence to the young Chaita's blow.

"Whoa, mama! That's a strong lad!" Gai straightened, clutching his head. Kurenai, too, was back on her feet and the four stood back-to-back, ready to kick some serious Chaita ass.

With a swift glance around them, Kakashi determined that there were eighteen Chaita gathered around the four who were going to fight them. Kakashi blinked, and then did a double take. At least sixty-four silver-clothed ninja were now around the group, all clutching weapons, which were all aimed at the four. And these were not clones. They were completely surrounded. And outnumbered. By completely real ninja.

_Damn._

* * *

"That's not good." Shikamaru did not sigh as he said this; he felt the situation was too serious. He, Chouji, and Ino, Ino clutching her sensei's baby, Maki, to her side, stood on the rooftop that, a few minutes before, had been occupied by Naruto. They had watched their sensei charge, had watched him take down numerous Chaita, and had watched Kurenai and Gai get completely stopped by a pair of silver and blue ninja. Now, they had only their nerves and wild imaginations to keep them company as they watched as their own sensei, as well as his wife and two of the strongest jonin around, were suddenly surrounded and completely outnumbered.

_Come on, Asuma-sensei. Kurenai-sensei. You can do it!_ Ino held the baby closer her, heart pounding.

Chouji wasn't even eating. His eyes were continuously switching from the still flaming buildings to the fight.

Shikamaru's dark eyes moved from the fight to scan the crowd, a frown on his face. He saw an orange blot that had to be Naruto up near the front, struggling against his own Chaita as he tried to move forward. Lee and Tenten were also trying to get through, as well as Kiba and Akamaru, but none of them seemed to be making any progress. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Shino, carrying a limp figure that reminded him of Hanabi Hyuuga on his back, quickly jumping away over another street of roofs. Shika had only a second to wonder what that was about before gasps from Ino and Chouji called his attention back to the main fight.

_What on the heck…?_

* * *

Raikou and Denkou, after watching the four opposing leaf genin struggle with the twins' grunts, acted as one. They didn't even need to look at each other to know exactly what their plan was. Appearing in front of the jonin, standing several feet apart, they started on a complex series of hand signs.

_This should give them a bit of a shock_, thought the boy.

_And finally show them our true power_, finished the girl.

They finished as one. Quickly biting their thumbs, they slammed their palms to the ground and yelled, "Silver seal jutsu!"

Drawing their thumbs along the ground they ran past each other and straightened. A line of something thick and silver lay on the ground between them, bubbling and squirming as though alive. The twins thrust their arms towards the Konoha jonin, wearing identical victorious smirks.

A huge sheet of silver erupted from the line shooting eight feet into the air. It surged forward, right over top of the jonin.

"Sensei!" Kakashi turned at Naruto's call and saw the silver mass towering over him. He gasped, but before he could run or warn his companions, the silver wave had caught them and he was lost in an ocean of silver and darkness.

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled a warning to his teacher, but too late. The remarkable silver sheet leapt over the jonin and landed, covering them completely. "Sensei!"

Naruto did not know what that thing would do to his teachers, but it obviously wouldn't be good. He expected to see their forms writhing underneath the blanket, but he didn't. The silver wave flattened to the ground. There was nothing underneath it.

_What the hell?!_

"Gai-sensei! Gai-sensei!" Lee yelled, eyes bulging and heart racing. He watched as the silver retracted back to the line between Denkou and Raikou, not revealing the missing jonin. A sick and confused feeling filled his stomach. "Gai-sensei! What did you do to Gai-sensei!"

Tenten, Kiba, and Naruto reacted in a similar way, aghast and fighting harder than ever. People all around them were giving cries of alarm and anger. Shouts of "What did you do with them?" and "Evil bastards!" were heard from all over.

Raikou and Denkou ignored them completely, smirking as the silver substance quickly retracted back into their hands.

_They're so annoying_, Denkou thought.

_Let's see who else tries to mess with us_, thought Raikou.

But the impact of the Chaita's disappearing act was overshadowed as a great rumbling was heard. Everyone looked and saw the greatest of the flaming buildings shudder and, with smoke and flames roaring from the entire inside, collapse. And as the beams and walls and ceiling fell in on itself, two figures fell forward out of the main entrance to lie in the dirt, coughing and smoking.

"Hinata, Neji!" The knot in Tenten's stomach loosened as she saw her best friend and teammate emerge at last. Beside her, Lee's expression was just as happy as her own. Kiba, too, looked relieved and ecstatic.

_They're alive!_

Raikou, hearing Tenten's shout, connected names with faces and realized that the two teens on the ground were the two that her grandfather had warned her about, the two that he wanted.

_Well, that makes things easier. Now I don't have to go looking through all of that scum_. She flashed a glance at those Hyuuga who had escaped the flames and were standing all together, surrounded by Chaita, to her left. They were too busy tending to each other and looking at their smoldering home to actually realize, though, that they were surrounded. No one seemed to realize yet that the Chaita had actually attacked the Hyuugas and started the fire. None of these Leaf Village ninnies had thought that far yet.

_What a bunch of idiots_. _And to think they call themselves a ninja village. _

The blue-silver haired girl reached up and touched a talisman around her neck, which was shaped like a silver eye. It glowed for a second, then dimmed. She smirked again and walked forward, right at the stirring teens at the base of the main building.

As soon as the Chaita twins, the ones people had seen flanking Lord Kokuzoku at the evening meetings and walking around the village, reached Neji and Hinata, Naruto and the other watchers knew there was something wrong.

From his place at the front of the crowd, at least two hundred feet from the place where Neji and Hinata had emerged, Naruto could not hear what was being said, but he saw their body language. Neji and Hinata struggled to their feet as the twins approached them, and were standing shakily once they arrived. Denkou began speaking to them, but Hinata did not listen. She looked around immediately for her father, searching desperately, and when she saw him, took several steps in his direction.

Raikou reached out an arm and stopped her.

Neji did not like that.

He stepped forward, anger on his face, and challenged the woman's action. Raikou was about an inch or two taller than Neji, but both had the same sort of slender yet muscular build.

Denkou took a step toward Neji, his voice raised as well as his fist. Neji turned to face him as Hinata angrily knocked Raikou's arm out of the way.

Denkou reached forward and grabbed Hinata's wrist.

Neji stepped between them.

Denkou yelled. Neji yelled. Hinata yelled.

Raikou pulled back and punched Neji in the mouth.

Chaos erupted.

The watchers, lead by Lee, Tenten, Kiba, Akamaru, and Naruto, pressed forward with an even fiercer intensity than before. The Chaita guards were hard pressed to keep them back, but continued to do the job.

On the inside, battle had begun between Denkou, Raikou, Neji, and Hinata. Naruto could see the silver flashes of the twins' attacks and the blue glow of chakra that were Neji and Hinata's. But the details were lost to Naruto as, with a roar, fifty clones erupted from him. The villagers, aided by these clones, pushed forward and managed to gain ground. Just before they passed the gates, however, the air changed.

A feeling of cool washed over everything, followed by a chill. The fighting between Chaita and villager ceased, but Neji, Hinata, and the twins continued. And then a huge gust of wind blew across everyone. Naruto's clones disappeared. Any physical effects of chakra vanished. Even the roaring fire seemed a bit dimmer. And then, with a swirl of silver and blue smoke, two figures appeared in the middle of everything; between the crowd and the intense fight between Chaitas and Hyuugas.

It was Kokuzoku, and Tsunade. The crowd froze. Chaitas and villagers alike bowed low, except the Leaf ninja who flat out refused, the present Konoha Twelve among them. No one moved except the four fighters fighting behind the Hokages. No one made a sound.

Kokuzoku coolly surveyed the crowd. He looked the same as ever; except that he had had a Hokage's headpiece made for himself and was wearing it. The one difference was that his was silver. His eyes of the same color, after looking at the crowd, turned towards his grandchildren and their opponents. They slitted.

"You four, stop." He raised a hand and, pointing it at the four, gave a small wave and a short hand sign.

Raikou, Denkou, Hinata, and Neji all froze. None of them moved a muscle, despite Neji being in the middle of a kaiten and Hinata being in the middle of a spinning high kick.

With two short snaps of his fingers, his grandchildren unfroze. Without even looking at the man in charge, they each moved to a cousin and, moving them to their will, bound Hinata and Neji's wrists. As soon as the cords were tied, they began to glow an eerie blue color. Neji and Hinata unfroze and were pushed over to Kokuzoku, where they were forced to kneel in front of him.

Naruto and Kiba growled low in their throats, fierce anger bubbling in both. Lee clenched his fists and Tenten gripped two kunai so hard, her hands were shaking. But none dared to move, unwilling to unleash Kokuzoku's anger on their friends.

"So, here you are. The two Hyuugas who seem to cause so much trouble." Kokuzoku's voice sent shivers up Hinata's spine, but she forced herself to meet his eyes. Raising her gaze from his feet, the blue-haired girl stared him right in the face with her pale eyes. Neji hadn't even hesitated and glared at Kokuzoku with all of his Nejiness.

Kokuzoku gazed coolly down at them while another pair of guards brought Hiashi over to them. His arms were not bound, but the guards kept a tight grip on him. The Hokage in Second, however, did not move his gaze from Neji and Hinata. After a minute, though, he turned away and said, "Blindfold them. I tire of their eyes."

Cloths were produced and two guards came at Neji and Hinata, ready to blindfold.

"What are you doing?!" Hiashi gasped, but one of the soldiers twisted his arm painfully.

Neji and Hinata struggled, twisting in their captors' grips. A big guard came and held Hinata's face still as her fold was secured tightly over her eyes. It took a kick to the chest and two more guards to secure Neji's blindfold, after which one remained with a hand on his shoulder, forcing his face almost to the ground.

After this was done, Kokuzoku turned to the crowd behind him. Everyone quieted. The only sound was the fire behind them. Then Kokuzoku spoke to the crowd in a loud, carrying voice.

"See now, inhabitants of Konoha, what happens when you question the authority of the Hokage and the Hokage in Second. These people," he gestured to Hinata, Hiashi, Neji, and the rest of the Hyuuga, "Questioned the authority of myself and of the Hokage. They did not follow the rules set down by the government for their own good. They did not cooperate, and now look at them!" He nudged Neji's head with his foot. "Despicable!"

Behind him, Raikou and Denkou stood in front of the group of Hyuuga and started the hand signs.

He raised his arms and continued, in a louder voice, "These creatures that you all held in such high esteem, calling them the most powerful clan in the village, are no more than rats! Filthy, white-eyed rats!"

The twins bit their thumbs and ran.

"These rats were attempting to overthrow the establishment that the first Hokage toiled so hard to create! They were nothing but trouble!"

The wave of silver shot upward, rising fifty feet into the air.

"Because we care about you all, Lady Tsunade and myself decided to destroy the rats' nest, and the rats along with it!"

The wave crashed, bringing all of the trapped Hyuugas down into its silvery shadows. Hiashi gasped and shouted, struggling wildly. The crowd erupted in screams and shouts, some horrified, some terrified, some angry. Hinata, desperate to know what was happening, tried to see through her blindfold, but found her Byakugan blocked.

"Know now, inhabitants of Konoha!" Kokuzoku's voice thundered over the crowd. He stood, arms raised, against the backdrop of the flaming Hyuuga complex, with his captives at his feet and his army of ninja all around him. "Know now that _this_ is what happens to those question the power of the Hokage! _This_ is what happens to those who question the power of the Chaita!"

And with a loud roar, he, the twins, and the remaining Hyuuga disappeared in a bang of smoke, leaving the remaining Chaita to deal with the angry mob of villagers.

* * *

You all have the right to hate me forever for taking so long to update! I'm so sorry! But I had school (of course) and also, I really wanted this chapter to be good. It was one of the first things I imagined when I pictured this story, so I wanted it to be amazing. I hope you thought it was! So tell me your opinion in a review, per favore! And speaking of reviews…

**My eternal gratitude to: Rosepetals and Strife, Katako-chan, The Elven-Spear, DanteHyuuga, kill the flamers, and LittleKittyShaoMao**

**You guys are completely amazing!!**

I'm sorry to say, but my next update will probably be just as long a wait as this one was. I'm really sorry, but the next month, two months, are really hectic. I'm sorry, but please stick with this story!

Until next time! Reading Maid, over and out.

P.S. Guys, this chapter was fifteen pages on Microsoft Word. I think that's a new chapter record for me. Woo-hoo!


	7. A Meeting

I do not own Naruto…obviously…

Chapter Six: A Meeting

After the night of the Hyuuga takedown, not one ninja in the whole village believed Kokuzoku to be a good guy; someone supposedly working for the better good of Konoha would not go and burn down the entire Hyuuga estate and arrest anyone bearing the Byakugan. A rumor was spreading like lightning from leaf ninja to leaf ninja, saying that the Chaitas themselves had set fire to the estate and that, on the night of the fire, they were keeping people from helping because they wanted the estate to burn. They wanted it completely destroyed. And, that was what happened. All that was left of the once glorious Hyuuga estate was a charred expanse of grey ash and the blackened outlines of buildings.

But it was not only that large, fire-burned area that made Konoha feel emptier. No one had seen a white-eyed Hyuuga since that night, and that fact itself was a topic much discussed by ninja.

'Where did they go?'

'What was that silver stuff?'

'Are they dead?'

'What about those two kids Koku-whose his face took with him? The heiress and the prodigy?'

Strangely enough, though, complaints against the Chaita and Kokuzoku were mainly coming from ninja. In the immediate aftermath of the fire, many villagers who were not ninja voiced strong protests against the Chaita. But as the days went, fewer and fewer villagers were heard. They continued on with their normal lives, simply accepting the changes made by the government without a word of complaint. The ninja were slightly confused at the villagers' actions, but only three understood the reasoning behind it.

"The reason that makes the most sense, even though it is a bit shocking and would mean nothing but trouble for us, is that the Chaita are slowly taking over the villagers' minds and controlling what they think."

"WHAT?! Are there enough Chaita to even do that?"

"If you haven't noticed, Ino, more and more Chaita are coming through the wall every day. They're probably almost equal in number to leaf ninja, now."

"So, if the villagers really _are_ being controlled by Chaita, then what do we do?"

"Well-."

"What _can_ we do, Chouji!? We have no idea how to break their control on people, and even if we did, how could the three of us take on the whole Chaita army alone?!"

"Obviously, we're going to have to tell people. There's no way we can do it by ourselves. If you haven't noticed-."

"Shika--shoot, Maki's hungry again. Do we have any more bottles?"

"Uhh…yeah. One more."

"Here you go, Maki. Don't you worry. We'll bring your mommy and daddy back real soon."

For another thing that was bothering the ninja of Konoha was the disappearance of four of the most powerful jonin in the village. Those who had seen the battle between Kakashi, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, and the sixty or so Chaita had spread the word all over. Questions similar to those asked about the Hyuugas were repeated.

'Where did they go? Are they in the Hokage tower? Are they dead? And really, what _was_ that silver stuff?'

Shikamaru, Ino, and Chouji (their sensei's baby now their constant companion) decided to share their knowledge of the Chaita's abilities with other, trustworthy leaf ninja. The time for meaningless grumbling, they decided, had come to an end.

* * *

"Have they finally come to their senses?"

"No, my Lord. They refuse to even consider it." The guard in the silver tunic, his lower face covered in a black cloth, straightened from his deep bow, but kept his silver eyes on the ground.

"And did you use any," the voice sounded mildly excited, "_Colorful_ persuasion?"

"Indeed. But it produced no better results."

Lord Kokuzoku tapped his long fingers on Tsunade's desk, obviously frustrated. "Leave them for the time being. Try again later. And tell the others not to hold back. Remember," his voice took on a somewhat creepy chill. "We are only after their minds. Their bodies, however impressive, are of no use to us."

The guard bowed and, as he turned to leave Kokuzoku's office, silently thanked the gods that his name was not Neji or Hinata Hyuuga. Despite his strict emotional training, he could not help but pity the two teenagers who most likely had no idea what his master had in store for them. _I don't envy them…not one bit._

* * *

"Hey, listen up! And keep it down already! We don't want the whole village knowing what we're doing!" Ino banged her fist on the table in front of her, calling for silence. But that wasn't really necessary, seeing as there were only ten living beings present.

Apart from Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Maki, the people that they thought were worthy of trusting were assembled in the basement of the academy (how they got in there in the first place, only Shika knows). Chouji and Shika, who was holding Maki, were seated next to the table at which Ino stood. The red-headed Tyron leaned against a wall, looking around curiously. Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto were assembled before them as well, as were the remaining members of Team Gai.

Both Lee and Tenten looked pale and downtrodden. Dark circles framed their eyes and their postures were slumped. Ino's heart went out to Lee and Tenten, feeling their pain at losing a team member. She glanced at the dark haired genius seated to her left, bouncing their sensei's toddler up and down on his knee, and Ino wondered what it would be like if Shikamaru was ever snatched from the safe comfort of their team.

An image of Shikamaru, wrists bound, kneeling before a crazy Kokuzoku as a huge silver sword soared toward his exposed neck penetrated the blonde's mind. _No!_ She blanched and pushed the thought aside, burying it deeply under a pile of other thoughts. Just the statistical difference his absence would make was depressing enough, not to mention the emotional side.

_I don't even want to think about it. I can't think about it. _Ino gave her head a little shake, focusing her attention back on the people in front of her.

"Alright," the blonde said, looking at her audience, expression serious. "We, that is Shika, Chouji, and myself, have called you all here today to discuss the Chaita and that jerkface Lord Kokuzoku and how he's completely ruining everything."

"Got that right," Naruto muttered angrily.

Ino grimaced and continued. "Now-."

_Tap tap tap. _

She stopped short, her heart in her throat. A short knock sounded on the door, followed by silence and then another knock.

_Oh, shit._

Sakura visibly paled and Naruto and Sasuke stiffened, hands drifting towards their kunai holsters. Tenten jumped a foot in the air before calming herself. Without hesitation she whipped out two kunai and twirled them on her fingers, her whole body tense. Lee jumped to his feet, fists held at the ready.

Ino's blue eyes sought out Shika's dark ones, panicking. _They didn't find us already, did they?_ She silently asked the genius, heart pounding.

The Nara, in response, stopped bouncing the dark haired baby in his lap and closed his eyes, a small frown on his face. As Chouji took Maki into his own lap, a small tendril of shadow slithered away from Shikamaru and headed towards the door, slipping under the crack at the bottom.

After a second, Shika spoke. "Open the door, Naruto." His shadow retreated.

The blonde did as he was bid, unlocking the small lock and pulling open the door. There before him in the darkened hallway stood Kiba, Shino, Akamaru, and a smaller figure in a dark cloak.

A smile decorated Naruto's tan face and he happily cried, "Hey, Dog boy! And Shino! And-." He paused, staring awkwardly at the cloaked figure. "Uh…"

Shino said quietly from behind his tall collar, "Take it off. We're safe."

Pale hands came from inside the cloak and pushed back the hood, revealing the pale, tired face beneath.

"H-Hanabi!" Tenten let her arms fall to her sides, shock evident on her face. Ino and Sakura showed similar signs of surprise. Sakura, being the medical ninja she was, immediately started to assess the pale girl's demeanor, searching for anything wrong.

"Are we late?" Kiba asked.

"No, we're just starting."

At Shikamaru's bidding, the group in the hallway shuffled inside, someone closing and locking the door behind them. Hanabi settled herself close to Kiba, staring straight ahead of her.

Tenten could not help but stare at the young Hyuuga as she took her seat again. After seeing so much of the Hyuuga family for the last few years of her life, not seeing even one pair of white eyes in five days was insane. Tenten felt like she was going through Hyuuga withdraw. Of course, the Hyuuga whom she really wanted to see still MIA, but the weapons mistress was satiated for the time being by his small cousin.

After the initial shock of seeing the girl wore off, a storm of questions swirled through Tenten's head. But Ino, calling for attention once more, beat her to an inquiry.

The bossy blonde did not mess around with casual conversation and jumped right to the main question that nine out of fifteen heads were thinking. "How did you get away, Hanabi? Why aren't you with the rest of your family?"

The twelve-year-old's gaze did not waver as she completely ignored Ino's questions. After a minute of silence, Ino started to get angry. But before she could explode, Kiba spoke up.

"Hanabi wasn't at the compound the night of the fire. She was with us," the teen gestured to himself and Shino, "So she wasn't arrested. She's been hiding with us. You know, since the Chiata attacked the Hyuugas and captured them all, we didn't think it was a good idea to parade around the fact that we still had one."

With a big grin, he ruffled Hanabi's dark hair. The girl glared at him and swatted his hand away, but the ghost of a smile now graced Hanabi's pretty but strained face. Satisfied, Kiba turned back to Ino.

"As you were, Yamanaka."

Ino shook her head slightly, then continued on with what she had started before the arrival of dog, dog boy, girl, and bug boy.

"Right. Well."

_There's no use skipping around, let's get right to it._

Ino looked coolly around at everyone before her. "Raise your hand if you were aware of the fact that the Chaita have a kekkei genkai."

As expected, Sakura Haruno's hand shot into the air like a bullet. Sasuke's finger could be seen sticking up from behind his folded arms. Shino's hand also went into the air. Everyone else stared blankly back at Ino, looking a little surprised.

Kiba turned to Shino, eyes narrowed. But before he could badger his taller companion for not sharing the information, Ino spoke again.

"And of you three, does anyone know what it does?"

Sasuke's finger disappeared back behind the arm and he tilted his head forward, eyes in shadow. Shino's hand retreated back into his coat. Sakura racked her brains furiously, but eventually put her hand down, sighing in a defeated way.

Even though the situation was so serious, Ino could not help but feel a little pride in knowing that she was aware of something Sakura was not.

_But you wouldn't have known if Shikamaru hadn't told you_, her conscience countered, stomping on the little bubble of pride until it popped. _Damn. _

"Just tell them, Ino." _Troublesome woman._ Shikamaru leaned farther back in his chair, hands folded behind his dark head.

"I'm getting to that!" Ino snarled back at her teammate. Flustered, she turned back to her audience and took a deep breath. "The Chaita, according to Shikamaru, have the ability of mind control. By looking into another person's eyes, they can gain complete control of their actions, thoughts, everything. The three of us think that Kokuzoku used his mind control on Lady Tsunade, and that's why she made him so powerful. And we think that now he and the other Chaita are taking over the minds of the civilians to try and stop all the bad talk about him. And so," Ino took a breath, "We are pretty sure that Kokuzoku is trying to take over all of Konoha, and he's getting rid of anyone in his way. That's why we gathered you all here. Asuma-sensei and Kurenai-sensei knew about this because we told them, but then they got captured. They can't do anything, but we can. We need to stop Kokuzoku and get rid of all those stupid Chaita before they completely ruin everything."

Silence…followed by more silence………and still more silence.

Ino coughed awkwardly. "So, any questions?"

Tyron raised his hand nervously. "Uh," he said timidly, as though expecting Ino to attack him for saying it. "I'm all for destroying the Chaita and all, and everything that you said makes sense, but how exactly do you plan on overthrowing them?"

"They probably outnumber us by now," Sasuke added quietly.

"And if you're right about their kekkei genkai, then how do you fight it? Can we even break its control on someone?" Sakura added, her brows knitted in concentration.

This time, it was Ino's turn to be silent. She froze and thought for a moment, frantically trying to come up with answers. Then she felt a familiar person move up beside her. Shikamaru gently moved her aside, sighing slightly. A small blush bloomed on her cheeks when his hand made contact with her arm and a feeling of relief and affection for the dark haired boy arose within her.

Shikamaru pointed a finger at Sakura and drawled lazily, "We don't know yet." He turned. "Yes, they do," he added to Sasuke, "And I'll think on it," was his response to Tyron.

Everyone in the room, with the exception of Hanabi, Tyron, and Maki, knew that when Shikamaru "thought" on something, it meant that he would come up with a brilliant strategy, or maybe even three, think each one through, plan each step, and use each person at his disposal to their fullest in whatever way he could. It meant that his genius brain was going to go for a joy ride.

Satisfied looks appeared on the faces of Shikamaru's year mates, Tenten, and Lee. Hanabi gazed confusedly up at Kiba and Tyron looked a bit uneasy.

_But,_ the older ninja thought to himself, _everyone else seems reassured, so I guess I'm fine with it. _He smiled at Shikamaru and nodded submissively.

"Okay, any more questions?" Shikamaru looked around and met each person in the eyes. "If you're all serious about this, then we have a lot of work to do. No backing out." But he could tell that no one in the room would be backing out. All of them wanted to be rid of the Chaita scum just as much as he did.

"Let's meet back here tomorrow, an hour before the meeting," Ino said moving back to the center of the table as Shikamaru stepped aside. "Okay?"

With nods of agreement, everyone rose to their feet. Departing in groups of one, two, or three, the room quickly cleared. As Shino, Kiba, Akamaru, and Hanabi departed, Ino wondered how the two were hiding Hanabi. She felt bad for the poor girl, who had no idea whether anyone in her family was alive or not, and whose home was now just a few piles of rubble and ash.

"Let's go, Ino." Shika called, and the three members of Team Ten, and Maki, closed and locked the door before departing, making their ways back towards home.

* * *

In a damp, dark cell near the bottom of Hokage Tower, four ninja sat in horrified silence, thick chains made for restraining chakra wrapped around each. The man with silver hair leaned back against one wall, legs crossed and hands on his knees. The knuckles on his hands were white and his hands shook because of how hard he clenched them.

Another man was trying to make his last cigarette last as long as he could, trying to distract himself in any way possible. He sat against the second wall.

A woman with red eyes was kneeling with her forehead touching the ground, right next to the smoker. Her hands clutched her long hair and her well-known eyes were wide in unimagined horror. Her breathing was shallow and tear tracks tattooed her cheeks.

A third man was sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest. His normally impeccable black hair was stuck in all directions due to the fact that he had clutched it in mental agony only a few minutes ago. His eyes were gazing off into space and his hands lay limply at his side. They were now bruised and bloody from having pounded on the walls during his desperate attempt to escape the cell.

The four would not have acted this way under normal circumstances. They were cool, experienced ninja who had all been captives before, at one time or another. But none of them, in their entire career, had experienced an imprisonment quite like this.

The sounds of two teenagers, teenagers you were quite familiar with, who you loved as your child, being brutally tortured one floor beneath you, were sounds no one should hear. Especially while locked in a cell and can do nothing about it.

* * *

**Please direct all hate and anger at my schoolwork, not me!**

This is so late…I'm sorry, everyone! So, so, so sorry. I have been busy to the point of madness since, well, since I started school. But things should start calming down soon, I promise, so I will get back to a normal schedule. I'm sorry!

Thank you to all of my amazing reviewers, who are some of the best people in the entire world for waiting so long for an update. I can't believe I made you wait a month and nineteen days! I'm so sorry!

**The biggest cookie I can find with your favorite Naruto character on top for:** **Kill the Flamers, LittleKittyShaoMao, DanteHyuuga, Katako-chan, The Elven-Spear, siny, and nira**

**You all are the best.**

Reading Maid, who will try her very hardest to update before Thanksgiving, over and out.


	8. The AntiChaita Force Twelve in Action!

I don't own Naruto

Chapter Seven: The Anti-Chaita Force Twelve…in Action!

And so, after having their first meeting ever, the "Anti-Chaita Force Twelve", named thus by one Ino Yamanaka, began to take action. Their strategical commander, one Shikamaru Nara, thought it unwise to begin acting dramatically from the very start, so a number of smaller missions meant to disrupt the Chaita way of life and how they functioned commenced.

_Once more people join us,_ Shikamaru reasoned, _then we'll really start working_.

The Nara became the group's unofficial leader and thus in charge of coming up with missions and directing them. It was a unanimous vote…even though Naruto came out of the electional meeting with a black eye and Ino glaring at him like the devil. Shika came up with many different types of disruptions for them to cause, ranging from somewhat silly and done for mere entertainment to more serious ones that actually involved some risk of being caught and reprimanded. But all of the twelve were so motivated that they did not mind the risk one bit. Over the next several weeks, many Chaita-directed functions were disrupted, Chaita battle equipment went missing, and the silver ninja were suddenly finding it much harder to carryout their orders. Plus, the guards suddenly seemed a lot less scary and somewhat more entertaining.

The group met as often as possible, changing their meeting place each time so as to confuse anyone who might be trying to track them. Not that Shikamaru thought anyone would suspect them (at least not yet), but he wanted to be on the safe side. So far no one had been caught during their mission, or seen by anyone who should not have seen them. Naruto thought that they should be less secretive and let the people of Konoha know that they were fighting, so that more would join the cause. But Shikamaru flatly refused, as did almost everyone else. Secrecy and successes were what they needed, not publicity and more numbers. When, or if, the time came for a more outward rebellion, then they would rally the civilians and Leaf ninja. But for the time being, they would not.

"Besides," Shikamaru added in a morose voice. "With so many people being controlled by Chaita, would anyone even rally with us if we asked for help?"

Grim silence followed his remark. The amount of civilians upset about the Chaita was growing smaller and smaller by the day, while those who were content and pleased with the Chaita grew. They settled down into the Chaita regime peacefully and went about as though there was nothing amiss. The ninja were furious; those who did not know that the Chaita were controlling the masses were also very confused. Again, Naruto voted for telling people about the Chaita's ability, and again Shikamaru was against it.

Naruto was so filled with pent-up energy and emotions that he did not know what to do with himself. He was as active as possible during the day, practicing and exercising for hours at a time, but he could not vent enough. He was so enraged with Kokuzoku, he could barely restrain himself from tracking down the man and throttling him himself. Also, he was in constant inner turmoil about his feelings for Hinata. Words could not even describe what he felt.

_I thought I liked Sakura_, he mused as he beat a practice dummy senseless. _But now I don't know…Did Hinata really miss me that much while I was on my mission? It's not like I really ever interact with her…I didn't miss her…did I? Did I miss her? Do I miss her now!?_

In his deep frustration, he threw everything he had into Shikamaru's missions.

Shikamaru, in his planning for their group, divided everyone up into two groups. The groups were divided up as needed for missions, but the two bigger groups were each given different kinds of missions.

People like Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Chouji, and Tyron, Shikamaru sent on the missions meant to mess with the Chaita guards, often simpler but immensely more entertaining. Naruto's favorite by far was the one in which they soured all of the milk in the Chaita guards' barracks (Shika was inspired by a story Naruto had told him when they were younger.) That day, every time Naruto saw a silver ninja racing towards the bathroom, clenching his stomach and looking pained, the blond would instantly melt into hysterical laughter. One ninja, cracking his whip at the feet of a few academy students to get them to walk faster, had the need to run in mid swing. The kids, watching him waddle away, were laughing just as hard as Naruto.

But those who weren't content with such lightweight missions, mainly those who were missing a teammate, Shikamaru gave different missions. And these missions, unlike the others, had a specific purpose: to find those missing teammates.

Over a span of two weeks, during a series of missions and using different people's abilities, Kiba, Shino, Lee, Tenten, Hanabi, Ino, and Shikamaru were able get a rough layout of how the Chaita were using the Hokage Tower.

They knew that Kokuzoku spent most of his day in Tsunade's office and that Tsunade spent most of her day in a small room next to her office. There was a pair of guards stationed at every door, all day long. Guards were also positioned at even intervals all along the outer wall. Other rooms in the tower were used for storage and other, unimportant Chaita purposes. Down in the bottom of the tower, below the city, was where the young rebels determined their missing friends to be. When the time was right, they were going to break into the tower and perform a rescue mission.

But Shika had yet to really think out this procedure. First, they needed more chaos, and they needed to get Kokuzoku mad.

* * *

"Oh boy, this is gonna be so great! I can't believe Shikamaru actually thought this up! It's genius! _Pure genius!_"

Naruto cackled evilly as he, Sasuke, Kiba, and Hanabi slowly crept along the roofs of Konoha, once again headed towards the guards' barracks. It had become a favorite striking zone of the group and Shikamaru had, once again, come up with a plan to both humiliate and infuriate the guards.

"Naruto, five year olds do this to each other. It's not all that genius. And keep it down, would you?" Sasuke shook his head in a somewhat disgusted manner. "Why Shikamaru sent you on _this_ mission, I will never understand."

_Why he sent __me__ on this mission, I will never understand either,_ Sasuke thought._ It's so…beneath me. _

Kiba and Hanabi did not contribute anything to Naruto and Sasuke's squabbles, instead staying a bit behind the two as they bickered back and forth. Shikamaru had decided that Kiba and Hanabi needed a break from the more stressful missions involving Hinata and Neji, so he sent them on one of the more entertaining missions. Hanabi was bitter about it a first, saying that she didn't want to waste her time and efforts on something so stupid when she _should_ be trying to rescue her entire family, but she had calmed down when she discovered Kiba was coming with her. Akamaru, unfortunately, was too big to take on such a stealthy mission and had stayed with Shino for the night.

The girl now glared up ahead at the two members of Team 7, pale eyes narrowed, and hissed, "Both of you, just shut up!"

Both sixteen-year-old boys turned to glare at the twelve-year-old behind them. They met a death glare the likes of which they had seen only on Neji. A very pissed off Neji, at that. They blanched and turned around, silent as statues.

Kiba snickered, saying, "I wish I had the power to shut up Naruto like that."

Hanabi reluctantly gave a satisfied smirk and they continued on.

"Okay, does everyone have their weapons?" Naruto looked around at everyone, huddled in the shadows behind the barracks, eyes all squinty with excitement. They nodded. "Show me!"

All three held up one thick, permanent, chakra-enhanced black marker. Sasuke looked away in shame, hardly believing the marker was being called a weapon.

Naruto grinned again. "Good! Does everyone remember the plan?"

"God, Naruto, of course we remember!" Sasuke grabbed his hair in exasperation, his patience gone. "It's so simple, even you could have come up with it!"

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"_SHUT UP!_" Hanabi hissed threateningly. Both boys froze, then turned their backs on each other and didn't speak another word.

The dark haired girl glared at them both, then turned to Kiba and said, "Let's get this over with before I kill one of them."

Kiba grinned wickedly. "Whatever you say."

The herbs that Sakura had dropped into the Chaita guards' water supply earlier that day came into full effect at about eleven o'clock that night. Those guards who were not on night duty collapsed into their beds as though they were corpses, so deep were their slumbers. The poor souls who were on watch all night long began feeling drowsy and had to use all their strict discipline to stay awake. Many failed and sat slumped at their posts, as unresponsive as rocks. At midnight was when Kiba, Sasuke, Naruto, and Hanabi made their move.

Using Hanabi's byakugan to negotiate a safe passage to the barracks and then swiftly picking the lock on the door, they made their way inside and set to work. Fanning out among the many sleeping guards, the ACFT members began to draw all over the faces of the Chaita guards. Unibrows, warts, polka dots, squiggles, you name it, they drew it. Hanabi went about it in a very business-like fashion, mechanically drawing over a whole line of Chaita's faces. Kiba moved lazily from person to person, clearly enjoying himself and taking his time. Naruto was like a whirlwind, moving from face to face, cackling insanely as he did so. He doodled wildly, sometimes not even seeing what he scribbled on a face. Sasuke, eyebrow twitching in annoyance, tried to draw something impressive, but when it came out looking nothing like what he planned, he resorted to fierce scribbling.

When every guard in the barrack had some sort of picture on their face, the four teens slipped back out as quietly as they had come. Then it was on to part two.

* * *

A hard pair of silver eyes, seated behind Tsunade's one-time desk, stared at the pair of guards before him. The guards shifted uncomfortably, their gazes on the floor. Kokuzoku stared for a long moment before finally speaking.

"And you say _all_ of the guards are like this?"

"Not exactly," mumbled the first guard, who had a picture of a puppy urinating on one cheek and a pile of…something else…on the other cheek.

"Each one is different…" The second man's entire face was covered in angry scribbles. His face was also slightly tender, as if the one using the marker had been very angry.

Kokuzoku let out a breath and closed his eyes. _For goodness sake…._"And you say none of it will come off?"

"N-no…we tried everything, but it doesn't even smudge."

Kokuzoku sat in silence for another moment. _These occurrences, these attacks on the guards, they are happening more and more frequently. And they seem to be getting more and more…crude. Almost as if a child were thinking of them. But a child could never have obtained sleeping herbs as powerful as the ones in the guards' well. It must have help from someone else. The majority of the civilians are under my control now, so it is most likely a ninja. But I've sent most of the jonin and ANBU on missions, almost all of which should last at least a month, maybe more. So who is behind these attacks?_

The office door banged open. "My Lord!" A soldier entered, the room, breathless, looking anxious. His face had been decorated to resemble a pig with too much black make-up. It was somewhat grotesque.

Kokuzoku stared at the man for a second, somewhat nauseated, before coming too and snapping, "What is it?"

"The-the w-wall! The intruders also struck the wall!"

_What is this nonsense?_

Kokuzoku, along with at least half of the Chaita staff lodging in the tower, stood at the base of the building, directly in front of the gates in the outer wall. Many stared in disbelief at a spot about twelve yards up, others looked somewhat confused, still others were terrified and kept shooting panicked glances at Kokuzoku, just waiting for him to explode. A select few were trying with great difficulty to stifle their laughter. Kokuzoku himself stood in the front of the group, letting no emotions show, even though on the inside he was raging.

The picture was done very badly, but one still got the idea. It was a large pile of something dark with smell lines coming up from the top. Sticking out of the dog mess (for that was what it was) was a head that bore a very crude, yet very obvious, resemblance to that of the Hokage-in-Second, the Head of the Chaitas, the all powerful, Lord Kokuzoku.

* * *

"Okay, everyone here? Good, let's get going. Shika." Ino stepped down from the table and Shikamaru stepped up. That morning, for a change, they were meeting back in the back of Ichiraku. Everyone was seated on barrels of noodles or spare stools, watching Shikamaru with respect as he looked around at them, then began to speak. Ino perched on a barrel and settled Maki in her lap.

"Alright, everyone. Last night seemed to go pretty well." Shika spoke in a lazy, business-like voice, but you could still sense that he genuinely meant what he said. "Everyone seems to say that Kokuzoku adored the picture of himself, and they still haven't figured out how to get it off the tower. And the guards…" His voice trailed off, a smirk tugging at his lips.

Naruto cackled wickedly and Kiba and Hinata both wore satisfied smiles. Sasuke did not react.

"They're still working on getting their faces clean as well."

The Nara's dark eyes moved over to Sakura, Tyron, and Chouji. "I'm assuming that your mission went well?"

Chouji grinned, giving Shika a thumbs up, and Sakura smiled happily. "Yep. Each post is set, so they'll all go off when you want them to."

Nodding, Shikamaru turned to Tenten, Lee, and Ino. He simply raised one eyebrow.

Tenten answered with a curt nod. "We're pretty positive we can make it down," she said slowly.

"It is coming back up that will prove to be a problem," Lee added, sitting up in his chair and looking gravely at Shikamaru. "We doubt that it will be possible without being noticed."

Shikamaru's eyebrows furrowed. _Of course,_ he thought. _That's probably what that scumbag was thinking. If he made it seem like getting in was possible, then any rescuers wouldn't think about coming back out. Once they were stuck, however, he would catch them all._

_Of course,_ he added, sighing and turning away,_ that may be just me being paranoid. Or thinking too much. I mean, would anyone ever __really__ think that far into it?_

He paused. _Oh yeah. I would._ _I did._

With another sigh, Shikamaru broke his stream of thought and brought his attention back to the meeting.

"Okay. So before I give out the missions for tonight, I'll do a quick review of what information we've gathered so far."

* * *

_I have to figure out who is behind all of these attacks…_Kokuzoku sat at Tsunade's desk, fingers laced together and head resting between them, thinking deeply. _They may be small now, but who knows what they may be planning for the future._

His contemplation was interrupted by a knock at the door.

* * *

"One," Shikamaru began, holding up his pointer finger. "We know that Kokuzoku now has complete control over pretty much everything that goes on in Konoha, including the majority of the civilians."

Frowns appeared on everyone's faces and several fists were clenched.

* * *

"Come in," Kokuzoku snapped. The same little Chaita who, on the night of Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto's return, had given Kokuzoku the information on their mission entered the room, clutching several folders in his hands.

When the Chaita Lord saw who it was, a grim smile appeared on his face.

* * *

"Two," Shika held up his middle finger. "He attacked the Hyuuga estate, destroying everything within its walls, and took the entire family under arrest."

Hanabi's face tensed as she listened to Shikamaru, her clenched fists shaking slightly.

"And we're assuming that he is keeping at least Hinata, Neji, and Hiashi captive in the tower. The rest, we're not sure of."

"Also," Shika continued, "On the same night, our sensei were snatched by the Chaita, and, again, we're assuming that they are being kept in the tower as well."

* * *

"Here you are, my lord. These were the most likely candidates, based on their statistics and histories, such as missions and their academy records."

Kokuzoku took the folders from Sadoku and laid them out on the desk.

"All the choices seem to be very logical thinkers and performed outstandingly in the academy."

* * *

"Three, based on the information we have gathered over the past several weeks, we have devised a way of getting into the tower to rescue said Hyuugas and sensei, if they actually are inside. We also have a shaky idea of how to get back out, but I'm still thinking on that plan."

* * *

A small frown appeared on the little man's face. "That is, they all have outstanding academy grades except for that one. His marks were abysmal, but he seems to be the most logical and strategically brilliant of the bunch."

Kokuzoku was only half listening; he was busy looking in the folder labeled _Haruno, Sakura_.

He glanced at the folder being pointed at, then dismissed Sadoku with a curt, "You may go."

* * *

"Four, we have managed to make the Chaita in general, but especially the guards, look like complete idiots on multiple occasions, and we are about to have some more fun with them this afternoon."

_If the civilians weren't all under Kokuzoku's control, then we may be getting a little more support right now…_he thought, but did not say out loud; the fact depressed everyone enough already.

* * *

Tossing aside the folder of _Uchiha, Sasuke_, Kokuzoku turned to the last remaining folder: the one Sadoku had said contained the poor academy grades. Opening it up, he began to read.

* * *

"And that's about it. When we do commence with our rescue plan, we will hopefully be able to get everyone out of the tower as well as cause more trouble. And seeing as we now number only thirteen people…twelve who can actually fight…plus a dog, then I hope you all see that an outright rebellion will never work. Unless we somehow manage to get about a thousand more ninja on our side, we will need to strike the Chaita at their heart. The only way we can win is if we manage to kill Kokuzoku."

* * *

_Name: Shikamaru Nara_

_Gender: Male_

_Current Age: Sixteen years_

_Genin Team: Asuma Sarutobi (leader), Ino Yamanaka, Chouji Akimichi_

_Extra information: One of the laziest ninja in all of Konoha, but most likely the smartest. Has an extremely high IQ and became a chunin at the age of twelve. Has an outstanding mission record, having failed only one mission in four years of being squad leader. _

Below was a list of all of Shikamaru Nara's abilities, such a jutsu, more notes on just how brilliant a strategist he was, and a copy of his academy records. Kokuzoku wrinkled his nose upon seeing them, disgusted at just how bad they were. But the boy's IQ and supposed strategical genius intrigued the man. About to close the folder, Kokuzoku glanced at his picture, and froze.

* * *

Shikamaru looked around at the people in front of him, at Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke, Tenten and Lee, Tyron, Shino, Kiba, Akamaru, and Hanabi, finally Ino, Chouji, and Maki. Everyone stared back at him, waiting for their instructions.

"Any questions? No? Good. Now, for this afternoon…"

* * *

It was the boy with the ponytail. The one who had come into the meeting late with the two Hyuuga teens and that Uzamaki person. The one Kokuzoku had dismissed as an average ninja with no special meaning at all. Well. This was a surprise. But it made sense.

_It has to be him. None of the attacks took place before that team came back. And two of the members of that team have been punished, one was even arrested. And if he is close with the Hyuugas and Uzamaki, he would have a reason to strike out. If this information tells the truth, then he certainly has the brains to do it. Yes, he's the one. _

_But how to get him. _

The old man scanned the papers again, looking for something to help him.

And then it hit him.

_Of course._

Snapping his fingers, two guards entered the room. They were different from the two from this morning, both with different facial decorations. Kokuzoku ignored these imperfections. Leaning back in his chair, he said quietly, "I need to you fetch someone for me."

* * *

"We'll meet back in one hour," Shikamaru concluded. "Down by the academy."

After everyone left but them, Shikamaru walked around the table and slumped down in a chair, facing his team. Chouji gave him a small smile, leaning back on his barrel. Ino set the baby in her arms down on the floor, giving Shika a big smile and saying, "Good job, Shika. I think everyone's inspired!"

"Inspiration isn't the problem," the lanky shadow ninja groaned, closing his weary eyes. "It's actually getting everything _done_. I mean, based on the plans that we've drawn up and all those nights of spying, it looks almost impossible to get back out of the prison cells after you get down there." He dropped his head back and let his shoulders sag. "And if Naruto says we should just go back out the way we came again, I'm gonna punch him. The way the Chaita run their guard switches, we'd be stuck down there until morning and then someone would definitely see us."

He rubbed his face with his hands, letting out a tired sigh. Ino and Chouji exchanged a look, concern in both faces. Maki began to crawl over towards the table, smiling happily.

"No matter how many times I think of ways to get around that way out, there is always something else to get in the way. It always keeps coming down to killing those guards…"

Ino sighed sadly. She knew that the only person Shikamaru wanted to kill during this rebellion was Kokuzoku. Out of all the people she knew, Shikamaru was the one who hated killing the most. Of course, he would when he had to, but only if there was no other choice. And with Shikamaru's brain, there was always another way.

"You'll come up with something, Shika, don't worry. You always do."

"Me and Ino'll help you, if you want. We can brainstorm and-."

Shika gave a wry smile and said, "Thanks, Chouji." He felt something tug on his leg and, looking down, saw Maki, signaling she wanted to be picked up. Answering the demands of yet another troublesome woman in the making, Shika brought the baby up onto his lap. As she played with the zipper of his vest, the teen studied the little girl before him.

She had both her parents' hair, which was growing at an alarming rate for someone so young. Her mother's ruby eyes graced a pale, delicate face that bore a slight resemblance to the Sarutobi line. She would grow up into a beautiful woman, just like her other, and for now, she was a beautiful baby.

_It's probably lucky that she's a baby still. It would be so much harder if she was old enough to actually miss Asuma and Kurenai. _

Ino and Chouji watched Shika watching Maki. The blond said, seriously, "We need to get them back, Shika. We can't let her grow up without parents."

Shika nodded slightly, eyelids sliding half-shut. The four spent the rest of the hour there, behind the ramen shop, before setting out to cause some more mayhem for the Chaita of Konoha.

* * *

The guards whom Kokuzoku had spoken to opened the thick door that led to the dank, dark prison area of the tower. They had instructions to do two things, the first of which involved a pair of teens in the bottom of the prison. Taking a torch from the rack, the men started down the stairs.

Down, down, down, they walked, passing floors and floors of empty cells. Reaching the very bottom, they headed toward the cell farthest from the stairs. Pausing at the door, they peaked in.

"I can't see anything," said one guard, eyes straining to see through the darkness of the cell. "Hold the torch higher."

The second guard complied, and the orange light from the torch faintly illuminated the interior of the cell. It revealed two battered bodies within, leaning against both each other and the wall. The light was not enough to see details, but the guards had heard enough from their comrades to know that these were the Hyuuga teens; the ones Kokuzoku had ordered tortured. Apparently he was trying to get them to agree to something, to which they had been refusingyhbv , for it was the two guards' job to now ask them if they had changed their mind.

"Hey, you two-," the first guard began, but a harsh voice from within cut him off.

"No, we haven't. How many times do you idiots need to ask before it sinks in that we are _not_ going to change our minds?"

_Grr…damn kid._ The guard clenched his fist and snapped, "Don't talk to me like that, kid. I know what I'm supposed to do to you if you say no."

"Then go ahead and do it," said a new voice from the cell, this one female.

"I will!" He looked around and saw the cord that Kokuzoku had described, hanging from a nail next to the door. Apparently these kids got it enough that they had been designated their own personal whip. Taking it down, the man unlocked the door. Pushing the other guard away, he stomped into the cell.

"Do you want to go first, or shall I, Hinata?"

"Oh, I don't know. You went first l-."

_CRACK_.

"What do you bastards think, this is some sort of joke?!"

_CRACK. CRACK. CRACK. _

"Are you laughing now?"

_CRACK. CRACK. CRACK._

"How about NOW?!"

The guard in the hall remained stony faced at first, but as the number of cracks increased, and the cries from Neji and Hinata grew louder and more anguished, his nerve began to weaken.

_CRACK. CRACK. CRACK. CRACK. CRACK. CRACK. _

Finally, he broke. "We have other things we need to do! S-stop wasting time!"

As his comrade exited the cell, hanging up the bloody cord on the wall as he did, he glanced back in the cell before they left, saying, "I'll tell the lord that you said no, then, y-. Hey, are you smirking? Hey-!"

"Stop it." The second guard gripped the first around the arm and dragged him up the stairs. The lower floor became dark once again.

Back in the cell, before the light completely died, Hinata saw as her cousin's smirk faded to a grimace of pain. He turned to Hinata and said, slowly, in a voice strained with pain, "We can't keep this up forever, Hinata."

She nodded slightly, even though now he could not see her. "I know…," she whispered. The girl leaned her head back on the stone wall, staring up to the floors above.

_But we can't do it alone. God knows we've tried. We need help._

As the cell slipped into silence, Hinata began to slip into unconsciousness. Before her world went black(-er), a picture of a boy with blond hair and blue eyes slipped into her head. _Naruto…_

Little did she know that, seated next to her, Neji was thinking of someone too. But his had brown hair and buns, a thousand pointy objects, and a pair of warm, chocolate eyes that Neji would give almost anything to see again, and to see look at him.

While the first guard tried to calm himself down, the one with the torch unlocked a cell one floor up from Neji and Hinata's. Lighting the interior, he peered inside at the four figures within.

"Which one of you is Asuma Sarutobi?"

None of them moved.

He asked again.

"Which is Asuma Sarutobi?"

Nothing. Then one of the figures, the only woman in the cell, croaked, "What did you do to them?"

The guard looked taken aback. "What?"

"What are you doing," she said in a slow, haunted voice, "To our students?"

The guard still in the hall decided to get involved. He stomped over to the door and growled, "Mujitsu, be more forceful!" To the inhabitants of the cell, he yelled, "If Asuma Sarutobi doesn't stand up, then we'll have to do more to those damn brats! Got it?"

After a moment, the man seated next to the woman slowly rose to his feet. The woman grabbed his hand, but after a silent exchange, she let go and he walked forward.

"I'm Asuma," he said in a slow, rumbling voice.

The first guard smirked. "Well. The Lord has a special job for you, Leafie. A very special job. And if you're lucky, you may very well see those precious kids of yours."

Back up in his office, Kokuzoku stood in front of his desk, eyes closed, smirking. _Well, Shikamaru Nara, you've played an amusing game, but it ends now. You will soon be mine. All mine._

* * *

Well, it wasn't Thanksgiving, but it was only a month and a day's wait…I'm really sorry. But this is a really long chapter, so I hope it makes up!

The story's starting to pick up and I keep getting new ideas, so I'm so excited! But I'm also reaching the end section of Babes of Neji and Tenten. So yeah. Man, Neji and Hinata get kind of harsh once they've been in prison for several weeks.

**MORE of my eternal gratitude to: Katako-chan, siny, LittleKittyShaoMao, and Wandering Wonderer.**

Reviews were a little down last chapter, but I'm hoping it was because of the lack of action. But there was more in this one, so hopefully there'll be more reviews!

Until next time! Reading Maid, over and out.


	9. Songbird

I don't own Naruto

Chapter Eight: Songbird

**Just a quick warning, there is some torture in here. And not like the whipping in previous chapters. Some more intense stuff.**

_Hands grabbed Hinata roughly by the shoulders, jerking her out of her shallow sleep. They dragged her out of the cell she shared with Neji and down the hall, bringing her into a room that had become all too familiar to her during her captivity. She struggled. The bottoms of her feet, tender and bleeding, gave a particularly painful twinge at the sight of the cane used on them yesterday. But the men did not bring her near the cane; instead they sat her down in a chair with shackles built into the arms that were large enough to go over the chakra-containing cuffs on her wrists. Then, without a glance back at her, the guards left. _

_Hinata sat there, trembling slightly, waiting for something to happen. _

_After about five minutes, her nerves began to relax. 'What are they planning?' she thought. 'Are they just going to have me sit here? That wouldn't be too bad.'_

_Then she heard noises in the hall. She leaned forward as far as possible, but she could not quite see past the doorframe. The creak of another door being opened reached her ears, as did the low rumble of male voices. Then a dull 'thud thud thud' told her that someone was coming towards her. A few seconds later, the same guard who had whipped her feet entered the room, causing her feet to twinge again. Walking past her into the closet where they kept the smaller torture devices, the man rummaged in there for a moment before coming back out to face her, holding his arms behind his back. _

_Grinning evilly at her, he said, 'Which hand?'_

_Hinata blinked at him. Was this some sort of game? Was he going to have her randomly pick what instrument of torture he was going to use on her?_

_She moved her gaze from one side to the other, thinking. Getting impatient, the guard said loudly, 'Pick one!'_

_'L-left!' _

_The man revealed what was in his left hand: an apple. _

_What? Hinata looked shocked. Why did he have an apple? She thought it was going to be a club or something else painful…but an apple? _

_Despite her confusion, her mouth began to water at the sight of the fruit, not having had anything but stale bread to eat for weeks._

_The man laughed. 'Looks good, right? I bet you're glad you didn't pick __this__ hand.' He put forward his right hand, which held a large and sickly looking hammer. Then he grinned again, eyes glinting. 'Or are you? Bring him in!'_

_Two more guards entered the room, dragging Neji with them. Neji had only time to take a quick glance at Hinata and the guard before the other two pushed him to his knees, hands spread out on the floor before him. Hinata cast a worried look up at her own guard, who was now guffawing loudly. _

_'Wh-.' Hinata's question was cut off as the guard shoved the apple in her mouth, catching it on her teeth. She relished for a moment in the sweet juice trickling into her mouth before a terrifying thought struck her. _

_What if the apple was poisoned?_

_The guard read the look in her eyes and said, 'There's nothin' wrong with it, girlie.'_

_Then he turned his back to the girl in the chair and walked purposefully toward Neji, raising the hammer as he went. Before either captive had time to react, the hammer was slammed down onto two of Neji's fingers, completely crushing them into the stone floor. _

_Neji let out a yell, caught completely by surprise. _

_Hinata's eyes went huge and her jaw went limp in shock, the apple tumbling out and rolling onto the floor with a dull thud. _

_The guards laughed uproariously, slapping their knees and stomping their feet. Neji bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut, determined not to cry out again. Hinata stared, horrified, at her cousin's hand, at the fingers that were bleeding and turning a brilliant shade of purple. Still laughing, Hinata's guard walked back into the other room and returned, his hands held once again behind his back. _

_'Ready to pick another one?' _

_Behind him, one of the other guards pushed Neji's head down to the floor so that he could not see what was being hidden. _

_Hinata couldn't speak. This was a game of complete luck; there was no way she could know what kind of thing she was picking. The guard had given her no warning on the attack on Neji, so what was to say that he wouldn't attack her this time? Or what if there was no apple this time and both of them were going to get hurt? Or maybe one of them would get it twice? There were so many possibilities. _

_'R-right…'_

_The guard smirked and brought forward…a blindfold. _

_'Now you don't even get to see what we're gonna do to your friend, but you're sure gonna hear it.' _

_One of the guards by Neji stepped forward and quickly covered Hinata's eyes, knotting the cloth securely at the back of her head. When he finished, the main guard spoke again. _

_'Now, let's see how long it'll take her to figure out what we're doing. Hold him up.'_

_The sounds of Neji being pulled to his feet met Hinata's ears, as did a light crackling. Footsteps leading away, then returning. _

_'Stop squirmin', brat.'_

_The sound of a fist meeting soft flesh. _

_'Ready?' _

_The rustle of fabric. _

_'Hold him against the wall, it'll work better.' _

_A slight scuffle, then a thud. _

_A hiss. _

_A quickly stifled cry. _

_A tumult of cackling and guffawing, which echoed off the walls and doubled back, filling the room with harsh laughter. _

_'Stop it!' Hinata cried, the guard's laughing drowning out any noise Neji may be making. _

_'Stop it? Girlie, we've just only begun.' Then, to the other guards, 'It hasn't even left a very good mark yet, damn it. Make it hotter!' _

_'No, stop it!' Hinata cried desperately. 'Please, stop! Stop!'_

"No!"

Hinata's eyes snapped open. She sat up, panting slightly, eyes wild, her ears ringing with the guards' terrible laughter. After a moment, her heart slowed and her breathing returned to normal. It was just a dream.

_More like a nightmare._

In the darkness, the girl turned to her right, gazing at the sleeping figure of her cousin. She could only see his outline due to the fact that the cell was in almost complete darkness, but she did not need light to know what he looked like. He would be curled on his side, back facing her, long, tangled hair lying slightly on the floor. One hand would be between his face and the floor, the other, with the smashed fingers, would be held carefully against his stomach. Over time, the guards had smashed all five of the fingers on his right hand, and a number of his toes. Underneath the dirty cloth of his shirt would be the burn left there by the hot poker the guards had used on him. Continued to use, for every day they darkened their picture with a new poker.

Hinata put a hand to her own stomach, which twinged slightly at the thought of Neji's daily torture. She watched her cousin for another moment, then lay back down. As her mind wandered towards sleep, she wondered why she only dreamt of that one particular torture session over and over again. She had only the physical memory of her other visits to that room, so why did she keep visually remembering this one?

Questions she could not answer worked like a sleeping pill for the girl and soon Hinata had fallen into a fitful sleep.

* * *

Kiba sat crouched on the roof of a building, watching the Chaita guard that stood several yards away in the shade of a nearby tree. On the other side of the building stood another guard, and the third and fourth were down the street on either side of the building. Akamaru was crouched next to him, wagging his large tail rapidly; he too was feeling the excitement that the pair always got when they were about to cause some serious Chaita-related mischief, and most likely pee themselves laughing afterwards.

The radio Kiba wore around his neck crackled slightly and Shikamaru's voice filled his head.

"Is everyone in place?"

"I'm ready," Kiba answered, staring at the guard with his canine-like eyes. The voices of the other people, stationed all over the village, crackled back their responses too.

"All set here," said Sakura, and Kiba heard a dog bark somewhere around her.

"Here too!" Was Tenten's cheerful reply, the shouts of children training at the academy the background music.

"And me," replied the steady voice of Tyron, vendors at the market behind him almost blocking him out.

A slight grunt told the world that Sasuke was ready and in position by the main gate.

"I AM IN PLACE AS WELL!" Reassured them all that Lee was pumped, youthful, and also in place on the very top of a very tall building.

"My god, let's go a little slower, shall we?"

_That would be Hanabi_, though Kiba, and he couldn't help but smirk.

"I'm here, Shikamaru!"

"Chouji, you're ten feet from me. I'm looking at you right now."

"I know, but I wanted to use the radio!"

"Okay…Shino? Are you ready?"

_Crackle. Crackle. Crackle. _

"Shino? Sh-. Why's there a bug flying around and around my head? Oh. Never mind. Shino's ready."

"Is that everyone, Shika?"

"Ino, why are you using the radio? You're even closer than Chou-. Never mind. I think that's everyone…wait. Naruto? Naruto, are you ready?"

Everyone listened closely.

_Slurp. Slurp. Slurp. _

There was a loud gasp from Sakura.

_Slurp. Slurp. Munch, munch. Slurp. _

Realization dawned on them all.

"Na-ru-to…"

"Man," came the blond's voice over the radio. He evidently did not know that it was on. "This ramen sure is good, Ramen man! I think it's even better than yesterday's!"

_Yesterday!?_

"NARUTO!!"

Kiba thought his radio had exploded. The voices of Ino, Sakura, and Hanabi when they are yelling, frightening enough when in person, were ten times more earth-shattering when their voice is magnified and directed right at your eardrum. A horrible shrieking noise came from the little device and Kiba ripped it out of his ear, gritting his teeth and cursing as Akamaru rubbed his head against the ground and tried to cover his ears with his paws.

"Damn, that's scary," he said to Akamaru, and the dog nodded his agreement.

After about a minute, when he thought it might be safe, Kiba carefully put the earpiece back up to his ear. He just caught Sakura concluding what must have been a very long rant with a very firm, "Disappointment to society."

There was a moment of silence. Then Shikamaru dared to speak.

"Well, now that we're all ready, let's get going."

Kiba backed away from the edge of the building to the point that was about equal distance from all four of the guards in his sector.

"Everyone knows what they're doing, right? Good, then on my mark release the first one."

Kiba folded his hands and concentrated on four of the eight small discs positioned by the four guards, two a person.

"On three. One, two, three!"

"Release!"

All around Konoha, about a hundred of the small discs erupted, releasing clouds of blue smoke all over about a hundred Chaita guards. They coughed and sputtered, trying to fan the smoke away but finding that the more they fanned, the more the odd-smelling clouds billowed around them.

Shikamaru's voice crackled over the radio. "Now the second one!"

"Release!"

A hundred more discs erupted, these ones releasing white smoke, plus a little something extra. Sealed inside each disc was a dog, and every one of the dogs, suddenly released near a Chaita guard, was immediately ensnared by an alluring sent that seemed to be wafting towards them from the silver-clad men. As though pulled by some spell (or jutsu) the dogs immediately leapt at the ninja who, in turn, promptly ran for their lives.

"Nice doggie," the man Kiba had been watching whimpered as a huge, shaggy sheep dog advanced on him, tongue lolling and all senses failing except his nose. "Nice doggie, please don't attack me, pl-."

Too late.

Kiba collapsed onto the roof, cackling with laughter. Sounds of the dog slobbering all over the man reached his sensitive ears, making him laugh even harder. Weak with mirth, he crawled over to the other side and peered into the street just in time to see his second guard sprinting down the street, a vicious looking pug bulleting after him.

* * *

Shikamaru watched as a Chaita tried to fend of a Great Dane with a kunai, which simply resulted in the dog wrenching the metal from the man's grip and then launching himself on the guard, licking every inch of him he could get his great tongue on. The teen's lips twitched upward in a half-smile, finding even himself entertained by this mission. The blue smoke had been a mixture concocted by Kiba and Sakura made especially to be as alluring to dogs as possible, to the point where they simply could not resist it. It had been an effort to get all of those dogs into the discs, but Shikamaru guessed that it was worth it.

"Oggie! Oggie!" Small hands gripped Shikamaru's arms and pulled on his sleeve, drawing his attention away from the ninja and Great Dane.

"What?" Shika cast his dark gaze down to Maki as she pointed at a golden retriever about a block away, chasing after another Chaita.

"Oggie!"

"Yes, Maki, that is a dog. Come on, let's go get Ino and Chouji."

Shikamaru scooped up the little girl and made his way off the roof on which he was standing and back down to the street below. Ino was already waiting there, wearing the satisfied glow that always followed a successful mission.

"It worked!" she cried when she saw boy and toddler. Jumping over to join them, she tickled Maki's tummy and said, "Did you see the doggies, Maki?"

Maki giggled uproariously and stretched her arms out to the blond teen, who gleefully took the child in her arms and danced around the alley. As they did so, Chouji appeared from a nearby rooftop.

Shikamaru clicked on his radio. "Any problems?"

When the only responses he got were positive, he let out a small sigh. "Alright, we're done for now. We'll meet at the academy tomorrow morning at five, got it?"

"What!? Five? In the _morning_!? Shikamaru-."

"SHUT UP, NARUTO!"

"I'm sorry!" Even over the radio, Hanabi managed to silence Naruto in one fell sentence.

"That's amazing, Hanabi, can you teach me how to do that?"

Shikamaru couldn't blame Sakura for asking to learn this amazing skill. But he did not stick around to listen and, with a tired sigh, switched off his radio and removed his earpiece. Ino and Chouji did the same. Shikamaru closed his eyes and leaned back against a wall, letting out another sigh. His two best friends exchanged a look.

"Come on, Shika, let's go get ramen or something."

"You deserve a break."

When Shikamaru didn't move, they walked over and, each one seizing an arm, heaved him to his feet. Shikamaru, who had just been about to protest, realized that he didn't really have a say in the matter. So he just gave in.

"Fine, but I'm not paying."

Chouji and Ino shared a satisfied smirk and, not releasing their grip on Shikamaru's arms, the three (Maki in tow) trudged out into the bustling streets of Konoha.

* * *

Lee and Tenten, without having even spoken of it, met up back at their team's training ground. Lee arrived second and found his lone female teammate seated on top of a training dummy, staring off into space. The tall, dark-haired boy approached and seated himself at the base. They sat in silence for a moment.

"How long do you think it will take Shikamaru to finish the rescue plan?"

Lee looked up at Tenten, looking surprised, but that soon changed to a knowing, reassuring gaze. "Knowing Shikamaru, I would not worry. He will come up with a plan that will blow us all away and then, using his splendid plan, we shall finally rescue Neji and Gai-sensei."

Tenten's face softened slightly at the sound of those familiar names. "Yeah," she said after a moment. "I guess you're right."

For a while, neither said anything. Tenten was staring at different parts of their training ground as she turned her head, and each part conjured up a memory of a certain Hyuuga. _And that's where I first hit him. We were both so stunned afterwards, we just stood there for about a minute. Then he smirked at me and said, 'Let's go again'. No praise, no 'Wow, Tenten, after being teammates for almost two years, you finally managed to land a blow on me!', no nothing._ But now Tenten realized why there had been none of that. That just wasn't the type of person Neji was.

Lee watched Tenten's gaze linger at one particular spot in the yard and he knew that she was remembering the first time she hit Neji. Gai and Lee, who had seen the event, had run over and given Tenten a massive hug, exclaiming at how wonderful she was for having come so far in only two years. Then Lee saw Tenten's eyes begin to grow moist.

"Tenten," he said slowly, wondering if he should finally voice the suspicion that had been growing in him.

"Yes?" Tenten said thickly when he didn't continue.

"Do you…are you…" he paused, thinking frantically about how to phrase what he wanted to say. "Um…is Neji…is Neji your songbird of youth?"

Tenten blinked, eyes clear once again. "What?"

Lee's face went wildly red and, chickening out, quickly tried to change the topic. "Look!" he cried, pointing up. "Birds!"

Tenten looked up to see a small flock of about eight or nine birds flying over the training grounds. "Oh," she said, and when she didn't pursue his question, Lee let out a sigh of relief. The pair watched the birds pass in silence, both lost in their own thoughts again. Tenten turned her head to watch their progress and found herself staring at the silver flag bedecked wall of what had once been the Hokage's tower. It still was, but not in the same sense.

"What do you think they're doing to him in there?"

Tenten's question snapped Lee out of his reverie and he turned a questioning eye to her. "What?"

"In the tower, what do you think they're doing?"

Lee turned to look at the building in question, eyes widening. "I like to hope that both Neji and Gai-sensei are in a nice, big cell with three meals a day and a window they can look out from and that they are left to themselves and are in the same shape that they were in when they were first taken."

A sad smile crossed Tenten's face. "Wouldn't that be nice?"

Silence again, then Lee got to his feet and turned to Tenten. "There is no use in us simply sitting around and being sad. Let us train for a bit, so that we can be in top form when we rescue Neji and Gai-sensei!"

Tenten gave a true smile. "I suppose you're right. Being sad a mopey helps no one." She stood up on top of the dummy and pulled out five kunai, wearing her battle face as she towered over Lee.

"And let us hope," Lee said as he sunk into his battle stance. "That as we train, Shikamaru will finish the rescue plan we have been longing for!"

Little did the two remaining members of Team Gai know that, at that very moment, in the lowest room of Hokage tower, their caged-bird was having his most favorite image in the whole world burned into the flesh of his stomach.

* * *

The guards released their hold on Neji and the boy sank down onto the floor, arms clutching his stomach, eyes shut tight. The guards in the room guffawed loudly.

"Now the kid's got a matching set!" One of them roared, pointing to the green mark on Neji's forehead. "One on his head and one on his belly!"

Even in his pain, Neji was able to wonder at the stupidity of some people.

Just then, the door to the torture room opened up and a guard walked in. Neji glanced up and away, then did a double take. Why were there Gai-sensei eyebrows drawn in on the man's face, along with a curly mustache, a wart, and polka dots?

As soon as the other guards saw the man, they froze, then erupted in renewed bouts of hysterical laughter.

"Man," one of them wheezed, tears streaming down his face. "I can't help laughing when I see you guys!"

The guard by the door flushed angrily.

"I am so glad I was on duty that night!" The guard who had used the poker bellowed, spittle flying from his mouth.

"Very funny," the guard with the face-art snapped. "But we already know who did it and a unit has been sent out to catch him. Now, stop laughing."

The guards slowly gained control over themselves, but then one of them said, "Gee, do you think after we get him, he'll do some doodles on my face, too?"

The men erupted again, pounding their knees and choking for breath.

Five minutes later, they had stopped laughing and the new guard finally said what he had come down there to say.

"Lord Kokuzoku wishes to see this boy. Bring him to my lord immediately."

* * *

Chouji let his chopsticks drop into the empty bowl with a clatter and sat back with a contented sigh. "Man," he said sleepily. "I am _stuffed_."

Ino and Shikamaru, both equally full, leaned back as well, feeling more relaxed than they had in a long time. They watched Maki through half-lidded eyes as she played with their chopsticks and tried to eat her own noodles using them.

"So, Shika," Ino said casually. "Have you thought about how to get back out of the tower after we get in?"

Instantly, the relaxed air around Shikamaru disappeared. He closed his weary eyes and, to Ino's eyes, he suddenly looked much older. Ino realized her mistake and quickly tried to fix it.

"Never mind, we don't need to talk about it now. Let's…uh…let's go for ice cream! Or we could-."

"No, we do need to talk about it. But not here."

The three quickly paid and walked back into the streets, Shika walking in the middle, Chouji on the left, Ino holding Maki on the right.

"I've been thinking," Shikamaru said slowly as they walked. "I'm gonna tell you two what I have so far on that plan, for two reasons. One, so that maybe you'll see something I'm missing and can maybe complete it."

_That makes sense_, Ino thought, head turned to look at her shadowy companion.

"And two," Shikamaru paused. "I realized that it's stupid to have only one person knowing everything I do, because if something happens to that one person, then everything he knew won't be of use to anyone else." He waited for a reaction from his companions, but got none. Looking up, he realized that they were no longer walking with him. He turned around and found them fussing over Maki, who had started to cry.

Shikamaru gave his usual twisted half-smile as he watched his two friends arguing about what could be ailing the child. _I guess they didn't hear that last bit. Oh well. _Just as he was going to turn around, someone bumped into him.

"Excuse me," Shikamaru said hastily, turning to see who it was.

Then his jaw dropped.

It was Asuma.

**If I was mean, I'd leave a cliffhanger. But I won't**.

"Asuma-sensei?" Shikamaru was dumbfounded. What on earth was his sensei, who had been captured by the ruthless Chaita several weeks before, doing standing in the middle of a busy street looking just as he did back then?

"Sensei, what are you doing here?" A trillion questions jumped into Shikamaru's mind. "How did you get away? Where are the others? What-."

Asuma shrugged, a grin on his face. "They just decided to release me, I suppose."

"Well, what about the everyone else? Gai and Kakashi and Kurenai? And any of the Hyuugas? Neji and Hinata. Did they let anyone else out?"

"No," the big man said slowly. "No, just me."

He took a step closer to Shikamaru. "I need to talk to you, Shikamaru."

"Wait," Shikamaru said. He gazed up at Asuma with calculating eyes. Something was telling him that something wasn't right. Asuma wasn't right. "Why are you so calm? They still have your _wife_ in there, and you're acting like you couldn't care less."

"Of course I care, Shikamaru. That's why I need to talk to you." Asuma reached a hand forward and tried to place it on his student's shoulder, but Shikamaru stepped back. Every nerve in his body was telling the teen that this was wrong, everything about this situation was wrong. But before he could question his teacher further, the three people behind him saw who he was talking to.

"Sensei!"

"Asuma-sensei, what are you doing here!?"

"Dada!"

Ino and Chouji came running forward to stand on either side of Shikamaru, their faces bewildered. Maki struggled to get out of Ino's arms, straining to get to her daddy.

"Dada! Dada!"

Asuma nodded to Ino and Chouji, then looked again at Shikamaru, completely ignoring Maki. "Shikamaru, I need to talk to you now."

The little girl in Ino's arms, confused by the lack of a reaction from her father, began to cry, fat tears rolling down her toddler cheeks.

Asuma turned a sharp eye to Ino. "Would you shut her up? I can't hear myself _think_!"

All three teenagers backed up, their nerves jangling.

"Sensei!" Ino cried angrily. "You haven't seen Maki in weeks and all you can say is 'shut up'?"

"What's wrong with you?" Chouji yelled angrily.

Asuma held up his hands in a surrendering sort of way and stepped forward. "I didn't mean anything, but I really have to talk-."

The three took another step back, hands inching towards their holsters. A cloud passed by overhead, casting them all in a moment of shadow, and in that second, Shikamaru saw a silver flash gleam in Asuma's eyes.

"They're controlling him," he yelled over Maki's cries. Ino and Chouji gasped. "Run!"

As one, they turned and sprinted as fast as they could through the somewhat busy street. Asuma took off behind them, calling, "Wait! I just want to talk!"

Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji did not look back but ran as fast as they could, dodging people, animals, and carts as they went, trying to confuse their follower, but no use. They could hear him calling after them, his voice never getting farther away but, if anything, getting closer.

"We've gotta lose him!" Ino panted. "Should we split up?"

They rounded a corner, but before either Shikamaru or Chouji could answer, they found themselves face to face with four Chaita guards, armed and ready.

_Shit!_

Team 10 turned and ran in the other direction, back out into the main street, but collided with Asuma. Shikamaru hit Asuma head on and was sent reeling backwards. Asuma made to grab him but Chouji spun his friend out of the way and pulled him around their teacher. They met Ino and sped in the opposite direction, leaving both Chaita and Asuma behind them.

"I'm so…confused!" Ino panted, ducking beneath someone's outstretched arms, cradling Maki to her chest. "Why…are…they chasing…us?"

Chouji let out a gasp. "Do you think….they found out….it was us…behind the pranks?"

"Maybe." Shikamaru jumped over a wandering Chihuahua and cast a glance over his shoulder. Asuma and the four guards were very close behind them. "Faster," he hissed.

Two silver blurs flashed down in front of them and the three skidded to a halt, then leapt back to avoid colliding with the guards head on. A kunai flew from above them and landed between Ino and Shikamaru. Ino saw the explosive tag not a second too early. She leapt backwards and landed on a balcony several yards away as the small explosion shook the buildings around them. Shikamaru and Chouji landed on the other side, but no sooner had their sandals touched the dusty earth than another bomb landed between them, causing them to leap in opposite directions. Tiny bits of the houses around them clattered to the street.

"They're trying to separate us!" Ino yelled over the din, then cursed, forced to jump further back by a small wave of kunai. "Shika!"

All around the fight, people in the street were running away, desperate to not get involved. Soon their part of the street was clear of everyone except Team 10 and Chaita.

Chouji, hearing Ino's warning, tried to get closer to his best friend, but found his way blocked by two more Chaita. With a roar, he lifted a fist and knocked the first one clear into the sky. Without losing his momentum, the Akimichi twirled and hit the other with a kick. But the man avoided the blow and appeared in a flash behind Chouji.

_Damn it!_

Shikamaru, having realized before Ino cried what the enemy planned on doing, barely had time to breath after the second explosion before three Chaita guards were on him. Whipping out a kunai, he made as though he was going to run through the left. The Chaita moved with him, but then Shikamaru spun on his heel and bolted for the right. But instead of running into Chouji, the Nara ran smack into another Chaita.

Without losing a beat, Shikamaru used the collision for his advantage and rammed his shoulder into the guard again, then used the falling man as leverage to jump over to Chouji. But before he could reach the Akimichi, something hooked onto the back of his vest and jerked him backwards. Then a hand fastened on his ankle and, with a mighty heave, pulled him in the other direction, breaking whatever hold was on his back. Shikamaru landed in the dirt at Chouji's feet as Chouji knocked Chaita after Chaita out of the way, giving Shikamaru a chance to regain his footing.

"Chouji," Shikamaru panted, realizing this may be his last chance. "For the plan, you need Ino and Kiba. They n-."

But before the leader of the ACFT could finish telling his plan, a small black ball fell from above them and landed at Shikamaru's feet. It sat there for a moment, both boys staring. Then it exploded.

"Shika! Chouji!" Ino, who had been left alone during most of the fight, cried out in horror. A huge cloud of black smoke erupted from the tiny ball and completely consumed her best friends and most of the Chaita. A second later, Asuma and a few more Chaita darted into the smoke cloud. Shouts and clangs of metal made their way out of the mass. Ino jumped from the roof and landed in the street, hurrying towards the cloud, but then she stopped, remembering she held a toddler.

_Damn it!! I can't risk bringing her in there! But I want to help!_

Before she could think of a way to help, there was another great explosion from inside the black mass. A burst of air rocketed out of the column in all directions, knocking Ino and many of the distant watchers over backwards and immediately dispersing the dense smoke as a resounding boom echoed off the tall buildings.

And then everything was silent.

Ino struggled to sit up, spitting dust out of her mouth and throat. Blinking her eyes, she stared desperately at the place where Chouji and Shikamaru had disappeared, but what she saw did not ease her pounding heart.

Chouji lay face down in the dust, just now stirring and trying to sit up. But that was it. There were no Chaita. There was no Asuma. There was no Shikamaru.

* * *

Dun, dun, duuuunnnn.

Oh my gosh, what happened to Shika!? And we got some more torture scenes in there for those pining to know what _really_ went on in the basement of Hokage's Tower. And a whole bunch of other stuff. Now tell me…what did you think?

**Our merry band of reviewers increased a lot this chapter, so here is everyone who reviewed last chapter. Free membership buttons and T-shirts for: Dragon D., siny, NotJustAnotherHuman, Katako-chan, Kouri Hakumei, LittleKittyShaoMao, Tensano Hyguuhi, LixxyChan, and kirei hana35.**

**Thank you all so much!!**

Until next time, Reading Maid over and out!


	10. The Slave

I don't own Naruto…

Chapter Nine: The Slave

Lord Kokuzoku leaned back in his chair, staring at the youth before him. Two guards held the sixteen-year-old by the arms, preventing him from any escape attempts. Not that he was in any kind of shape to be making escape attempts; the boy looked like he would be on the floor if not for the support on his arms. Weariness was etched in every inch of his body, and dark shadows framed each eye. He was much thinner than Kokuzoku remembered, but that was to be expected of a prisoner who had had nothing but stale bread and water for four weeks straight. The rough, metal cuffs that were meant to cut off a person's chakra hung loosely on his thin wrists.

But the one part of Neji Hyuuga that did not show any sign of weariness or wear was his eyes. Pale as stars, they stared out at Kokuzoku through the grime and exhaustion with a determination and confidence Kokuzoku would not have expected of one who had become so familiar with his torture chamber. They seemed to gleam almost as much as Kokuzoku's own pair of silver eyes. Unlike Kokuzoku, though, there was no glint of evil in Neji's. But no matter. That self-assured look would change very quickly.

For several minutes, Kokuzoku did nothing but gaze at Neji, taking in every detail of his appearance. Neji stared at Kokuzoku staring at him, but did not say anything. After a while, Kokuzoku spoke.

"So, Neji Hyuuga," the Hokage-in-Second said in a familiar, relaxed voice. "How are you enjoying your stay in my tower? Are you finding the dungeons…suitable?"

Neji eyed Kokuzoku carefully, searching for a trap. "Not particularly," the Hyuuga responded, in the voice that only he could do.

Kokuzoku smirked. "Splendid." He closely examined his fingernails. "And your cousin? How does she like it?"

The Hyuuga shrugged, never taking his gaze from his captor.

Another stretch of silence ensued, during which there was much more staring.

Kokuzoku sat forward in his chair and leaned his elbows on the desk. Folding his hands, he spoke again, in a voice that was somewhat harder than before. "I have to tell you, your records are very impressive. Mastering the Kaiten at only thirteen, being taught by the head of the family, leading so many successful missions…very, very impressive indeed."

He waited for some kind of reaction from Neji, but, upon receiving none, continued.

"And then, when your family's compound burned down, you gave my dear Raikou a fair challenge."

Flashes from his battle with the silver-haired ninja came to Neji's mind, as did the burning resentment that came with the knowledge that she had beaten him so thoroughly. But he did not let this show in his eyes. He continued to give Kokuzoku his most Hyuuga-like gaze, demeaning, confident, and infuriating at the same time. Neji did not know why Kokuzoku had brought him out of the dungeon, but he _did_ know that he did not want to give the old man any satisfaction.

The only pair of white eyes in the room followed Kokuzoku as he rose from his desk and strolled toward the window, where the man remained, gazing down at the village he had so easily taken over.

"You are without a doubt one of the strongest, if not _the_ strongest ninja in the village at the current time, seeing as almost all of your superiors are away. Well, you are the strongest _leaf _ninja, for obviously you are not the better of those of Chaita blood." He gave a small, smug smile. But then his expression turned grimmer and he turned to face Neji.

"Because you are so strong, under normal circumstances, I would have to have you banished or killed, like I have had to do with several of your other ninja."

At this, Neji started. Kokuzoku noticed this and gave a small, satisfied smirk.

_At last_, he thought. _A reaction. _

"Wondering who is gone? Well," Kokuzoku gave a small laugh. "I believe the better question to ask would be, who _isn't_ gone."

The old man began to pace around the room, one hand on his cane, the other behind his back. The guards turned, pulling Neji with them, so that their captive was always facing Kokuzoku.

"From the beginning of my time in power, the native ninja of this village have been difficult. No one save Hiashi Hyuuga dared come forward about it, but everyone else muttered and complained amongst themselves. Of course, those mutterings began to plant themselves among the entire population, and they began to grow. If I had not acted, there may well have been an all-out rebellion, and that would be unacceptable. Thus, obvious choice was to get rid of the 'planters' of these rebellious seeds.

"In order to set an example, and to possibly discourage others, I had to first get rid of the Hyuugas, as you well know. And I'm sure you're just _bursting_ to know what's become of the rest of you, am I right?"

Sending a smirk at his prisoner, the Chaita crooned, "Rest assured, you and your cousin are not the last two Hyuugas remaining. I did not slaughter your entire family."

Neji felt one of the knots in his heart loosen.

Kokuzoku turned to glance out another window.

"Only half."

Pleasure was Kokuzoku's emotion as he saw his pale captive's face turn even paler, managing even to take on a grayish tinge.

"Oh yes," the man continued, relishing in the slow horror that was beginning to show in Neji's face. "I didn't have the _room_ to hold all two hundred of you captive. Of course, some were destroyed in the fire, others from wounds inflicted by it. I decided to keep some of you, obviously. Why destroy a kekkei genkai that has so much potential and use? But," he strummed his fingers along the windowsill. "It _is_ possible to have too much of a good thing. I thought that fifty seemed like a reasonable number, don't you agree?

_Fifty?_ Neji felt the floor beneath him begin to sway. _There are fifty __left_

"I believe we should have a very fertile outer region this spring, with so many extra nutrients and fertilizers in the ground. I wouldn't touch the river, though," Kokuzoku smirked in a voice like butter. "You know how many diseases dead bodies carry."

Neji looked like a puppet in his captors' grips, his face dead and his body limp.

Kokuzoku had made a full circuit of the room by now and had returned to stand in front of his desk, leaning his cane against the front. He straightened some papers laying on its surface. "That same night, I was fortunate enough to obtain four of the main shinobi who had been muttering against me. They are being held here. I had believed that, once they were gone, the problems would stop. But I was wrong. Within hours, many _more_ shinobi began outwardly speaking against us. I then had to deal with them. Many I sent away on missions to the east and west, as far away as possible from the village. I knew that, if I was to avoid the hatred of the free villagers, I could not simply slaughter them all. But several of the more outspoken ones had to be dealt with in a more…harsh way."

Kokuzoku turned to face Neji, a terrible look in his eyes. "Are you familiar with Anko Mitarashi? Or how about Ibiki Morino?" He smirked at the flash of recognition he saw in the boy's eyes.

"Two of the most spirited rebels, by a long shot. And where are they now? I decided it was simply too nice to just kill them off. That would be too swift, too clean. So I thought of something different." With the tip of his boot, the old man tapped the floor before him. "Were you aware of the fact that there is a dungeon below your own?"

He stared Neji in the eyes, but the gaze he met was dull. Frowning slightly, Kokuzoku continued. "There is, in fact. It is more like a hole in the ground with a lid above it than an actual dungeon, but it works quite well. Those two have come to know that place very well by now, I imagine. I couldn't tell you for sure, though. We haven't opened the door since we put them in." He chuckled. "Who knows what kind of state they are in."

The Hyuuga's eyes fell to the ground, his mind reeling. He did not know what to think. _Do I believe him? How can I tell if he's lying? _

Kokuzoku stared at Neji, studying his reaction.

"I lie not, boy. Would you like proof? Would you like to see your family's blood on our blades? The dirt of their graves? Not that there is much to see, mind you. Just a large field, really. And if you wish to see more, maybe you could be the one to _look in_ on the two below you, see if they are even still _alive_!"

Neji could not respond.

When Tsunade had occupied the office, the windows had always been open and the noise from the streets below had drifted into the room, supplying a kind of casual background music. The tower as a whole had been bustling with life. But now, the windows were closed. The room was silent, as was the rest of the tower. The only noise in Kokuzoku's office was the tapping of his fingers as he watched the teen before him. One of the guards shifted slightly, the other scratched his nose.

After several minutes, Neji lifted his head and spoke. "I see no reason for you to tell me all of this for just idle conversation, unless you were planning on killing me. But whatever your actual purpose is, I would appreciate it if we could discuss it soon."

"Quiet, brat!"

Kokuzoku watched with a calm face as his guard slapped his prisoner on the back, causing the boy to wince and jolt forward. Apparently, the wounds from the whip were still fresh and tender and did not appreciate being treated so.

When the scuffle ended, the Chaita lord stared at Neji, a small smirk on his face, and spoke.

"Well, boy, if you are getting so impatient, I suppose I could 'get to the point'. I only wanted to give you as much time in the free air as I could, a sort of last meal. Oh well. If you want to cut your freedom short, I am more than willing to oblige."

_What is he talking about…I'm not free up here. Does he mean before he sends me back to the dungeon? _Neji could see no other explanation, but his senses told him that he was wrong. Lord Kokuzoku wanted something else.

The said man straightened and stared hard at Neji, all traces of humor gone from his face.

"As I have said before, you are a remarkable ninja. The fact that you have mastered your byakugan and the styles of your family make you an even fiercer adversary. I want you-."

Kokuzoku was interrupted by a knock at the door. The old man turned and nodded to the doorman, who pulled it open. Another guard walked in, bowing low as the door closed behind him.

"We have caught him, my lord."

A satisfied glint appeared in Kokuzoku's eyes and a smirk appeared on his thin lips. He glanced out the door. "Excellent. Bring him in."

Kokuzoku turned to Neji, an extremely pompous air about him. "I believe you will enjoy seeing our new captive, Master Hyuuga."

Neji refused to show Kokuzoku his curiosity or confusionand instead kept his face impassive. Inside, though, he was dying to know who was unlucky enough to be captured, and why Kokuzoku thought he, Neji, would be happy about it. A wild idea flashed through his head. _What if it's Tenten?_ A bubble of happiness rose in him at the thought of seeing her, but it was instantly popped by a spike of guilt and worry, and he prayed for all he was worth that it was _not_ his brunette-haired teammate being manhandled in the hall. At the idea of Tenten being manhandled by these Chaita bastards, a fierce anger and feeling of protectiveness rose up in Neji. If a Chaita ever touched Tenten, Neji would kill them.

The guard nodded to Kokuzoku and turned to open the door behind him. Nodding to the people outside, he turned around and walked back in, followed by two more guards. Between them they held another person, whose arms were tightly chained behind his back. Neji saw with relief that it was a he and not wearing a pink shirt, but then he recognized the person and a fresh jolt of shock ran through him. A scowl decorated the new captive's face, and his whole person was dusty and torn. A cut on one shoulder bled sluggishly, and a bruise was coming to life on his right cheekbone. His dark eyes widened when they saw Neji.

"Welcome to my tower, Shikamaru Nara." Kokuzoku opened his arms in a welcoming gesture, leaning back on his desk as he did. "I hope you did not encounter too much trouble on your way here."

The teen shifted in the grips of his captors, trying to prevent his arms from loss of all feeling. He quickly took in the scene, the room, the people, before deciding to answer.

"Well," Shikamaru drawled, looking at Kokuzoku through his dark, sharp eyes. "I wasn't exactly _planning _on coming here. Not yet, anyway. But your guards _could_ learn a thing or two about manners. I don't know if it's a Chaita custom to ambush someone in the street and forcibly drag them to your lodgings when you wish to speak with them, but in Konoha, that's generally not considered acceptable. Some would even call it mean."

Had Ino or Chouji been in the vicinity, they would have smacked their foreheads very hard, groaning.

Kokuzoku's eyes flashed, before the wiry old man slowly closed them. He turned away from the group and walked slowly to a window. Leaning on his cane with both hands, he stared out at the cloudy sky.

Neji and Shikamaru's gazes instantly moved towards the other, millions questions practically spilling from both.

_Why did they bring you here? Where is Hinata? Where is Hiashi, or the other two hundred missing Hyuugas? Where are Asuma, Gai, and the others? You look terrible, does Hinata look as bad as you? _

_Why did he bring you here? What on earth has been going on? Where is everyone else? Did anyone get arrested? Did anyone get __killed__? How is Lee? How is Tenten?_

But Shikamaru had only caught the slightest glimpse of the shadow in the Hyuuga's eyes before his guard, following his gaze, gave a sharp grunt and jerked him around, preventing their eyes from meeting.

For several minutes, no one said a word. Kokuzoku continued to stare out the window and Neji and Shikamaru watched him. Well, Neji watched him; Shikamaru was being forced to face a blank wall.

_Well, this certainly doesn't go along with my plan_, the genius thought, staring at the chipping wallpaper. _But it does put an interesting spin on things. _

Kokuzoku finally moved. Turning around, he slowly walked toward Shikamaru, his cane thumping on the hard floor with every other step. The Nara watched his approach with a calculating gaze. When he was a foot away from Shikamaru, the Chaita stopped.

"So, Shikamaru Nara, the infamous Shikamaru Nara. You feel that, a mere hour after I have you arrested for crimes punishable by death and then brought before me, you are in a position to be a smart ass. Is that so?"

Shikamaru stared up the several inches between them, expression blank. "Smart ass? I don't know what you mean."

The silver eyes flashed dangerously.

Raising his cane, Kokuzoku smashed the hard, metal bottom down onto the back of Shikamaru's dark head.

"Agh!" Shikamaru let out a sharp yell, his knees giving way from the force of the blow.

Neji let out a shout of protest, struggling against his guards.

Kokuzoku swung the cane back again, hitting Shikamaru on first the left side of his head, then the other side, both times drawing blood. The red, sticky liquid flowed down his face to his chin, dripping down onto the floor. Shikamaru bit his lip hard to keep himself from giving Kokuzoku the pleasure of hearing him yell, one eye squeezed tightly shut.

Kokuzoku slowly brought the cane to rest at his side. He stared at Shikamaru through crystalline eyes.

"Do you know what I mean now, boy? Do you have any problems understanding _that_?"

Shikamaru kept his head down. "Just one thing. Why exactly was I arrested again?"

_Thwack!_

Blood now trickled from the boy's forehead, running down the bridge of his nose.

Kokuzoku lifted his cane, examining the bloody bottom. Casually, he leaned forward and wiped it on Shikamaru's vest. When the metal was returned to it's usual shine, the man set it on the floor, leaning once again.

"I see you're not quite ready to cooperate. Very well." Kokuzoku smirked, eyes flashing again. "I am in no rush. We have all the time in the world."

Pausing a moment, Kokuzoku turned back to Neji, who followed the old man with raging eyes. Kokuzoku stopped in front of the boy, staring him in the eyes.

"My guess is that you are now impatiently waiting for me to say what I am going to say, so that I will send you both down to your oh-so-comfortable dungeon and you can catch up on everything that you've missed during your stay at my home, right?"

He chuckled slightly, lifting one finger and examining the nail closely. "Well, I'm sorry to say that you are very wrong. You will not be returning to your dungeon, Neji Hyuuga, because you are going to stay here and assist me."

Neji snorted: a very un-Neji thing to do, but he could not help it. Smirking himself now, the Hyuuga said acrimoniously, "And what makes you think I am going to help you?"

Shikamaru, face still bloody and head throbbing, stared at the old man intently, wondering what he was planning. Kokuzoku continued to chuckle.

Then the puzzle was finally completed in both captives' minds.

_Shit._

"Wait-," Shikamaru started, but his guard smacked him on the side of the head, sending waves of pain and dizziness through Shikamaru's already shaky mind. Neji's eyes widened and he tensed in his guards' grips.

Happy his prey had finally caught up on his plan, Kokuzoku ran one finger along Neji's pale chin.

"Take a good look around, Neji, because this will be your last sight of the world you will see through your own eyes."

Dropping his cane with a clatter, Kokuzoku roughly grabbed Neji's face with both hands and forced him to look at him. Kokuzoku's fingers were like ice on Neji's skin.

Instantly, Neji closed his eyes, determined not to meet the silver gaze of his captor. Hard, calloused fingers grabbed his eyelids and attempted to pull them back. Neji tried to twist out of their grip, but Kokuzoku held his head and the other guard held his arms. After a moment, the fingers got a hold and, despite Neji's struggles, slowly forced his eyes open.

He caught a glimpse of Shikamaru on the floor, staring up at him in horror, and of Kokuzoku's ghastly face, but then his gaze was finally caught by the silver eyes.

Neji's mind began to waver. He felt himself getting lost in a huge, silver whirlpool. It hooked him like a fish and pulled, bringing him down and down into its swirling interior. Neji felt his feet leave the ground, his mind leave his body, and soon he was completely swallowed up by an ocean of swirling silver mire.

"Neji!" Shikamaru called his friend's name, staring in horror as his body went rigid, gaze locked with Lord Kokuzoku's. "Neji!"

But there was nothing Shikamaru could do. A second later, Neji's body relaxed and Kokuzoku released the boy's head, a satisfied smirk on his lined face.

"Unlock his cuffs," Kokuzoku said, wiping his sweaty hands on his pants. "He won't need them any longer."

One of the guards holding Neji's limp arms reached into his belt pouch and produced a key with which he released the metal cuffs on Neji's wrists. He placed them into the boy's hands. The whole time, Neji stared distantly off into space, face and eyes blank, his body like a rag doll.

Glancing at Shikamaru, Kokuzoku said, "Place them on the other."

Robotically, Neji walked over to Shikamaru and bent down to place the cuffs on his wrists.

"Neji..." Shikamaru was lost for words. He knelt limp and unresponsive as Neji clicked the cuffs shut, then straightened, keeping Shikamaru on the ground.

Kokuzoku was already back at his desk, searching through a pile of papers. Without even looking up, he said, "Take him to the dungeon, then report back."

One of the guards handed Neji a key, then yanked Shikamaru roughly to his feet. Neji grabbed Shikamaru's arm and dragged him out of the room.

As soon as they were out of earshot of Kokuzoku's office, Shikamaru began to speak.

"Neji, snap out of it. Kokuzoku's controlling you." Shikamaru's voice was low and urgent, and at the same time a not of panic was rising in it he could not control. "You're not yourself! He's making you do this!"

Neji completely ignored him. Looking up at the older boy's face, Shikamaru saw a blankness that was similar to his usual expression, but at the same time it was completely different, especially in his eyes.

"Neji!"

All the way through the tower, past offices where nervous Konoha officials and commanding Chaita officials worked side by side, Shikamaru tried to get through to the real Neji, but his efforts were in vain. They reached the entrance to the dungeons and Neji hauled him forward. All the way down, they passed empty cells, until they reached the second to last floor. As they entered the landing and headed for the next flight down, they passed the only occupied cell. Shikamaru glanced quickly inside, and he felt his stomach drop.

"Kurenai-." Neji jerked Shikamaru forward, cutting him off.

The woman leaning against the bars, head down, lifted it ever so slightly. Her red eyes gleamed in the gloom, framed by shadows on all sides. Upon seeing the teens, however, they widened. Her mouth slackened and she straightened ever-so-slightly.

"N-neji-."

"Kurenai, the Chaita are-." Shikamaru was cut off once again by Neji, who, not even looking back at the woman, gave Shikamaru a sharp prod in the back and sent the boy tumbling down the stairs to the floor below.

The woman screamed. "Neji, what are you doing!?"

Two other figures appeared at the bars, chains clanking, eyes wide and disbelieving.

"Neji!" Gai's face held too many emotions to identify them all: joy at seeing his student after so long apart, his relief to see him alive, a permanent weariness and exhaustion from weeks of imprisonment…. He held out his hands to his student, thankful to finally see him in the flesh and blood instead of simply hearing his screams echoing up from the floor below. "Neji, you're okay. How did you escape? Do you have a key?"

The tall, thin Hyuuga teen glanced over his shoulder to look at his sensei. In the dim light from the single torch on that floor, the three saw not the familiar, pearly interior of the Hyuuga eyes, but a flash of cold, silver ice instead.

In a chilling voice very unlike his own, the boy said, "Get away from the bars, or I shall call the guards."

And before the three speechless jonin could respond, he turned and followed his prisoner down the stairs.

Several seconds passed. Gai slumped to his knees, still staring, horrified, at the place where his student had disappeared. He was speechless.

"First Hokage help us," he breathed through lips that had gone numb. "They took him."

At the bottom of the stairs, in almost complete darkness, Shikamaru struggled into an upright position, which proved more difficult than he imagined, thanks to his arm bindings and his soreness from the fall. Before long, though, Neji's shoes appeared before his face and the Chaita-slave had heaved him to his feet, dragging him to the only cell on that level. With a small click, Neji unlocked the door and swung it open.

"Neji," Shikamaru, desperate, implored the Hyuuga to wake up one last time. "Neji, think about what you're doing. You're letting Kokuzoku control you. He's taken over your mind! He-."

As Shikamaru's words slid off deaf ears, Neji stood back and pushed the shadow ninja into the black cell, sending him to his knees once again. Before Shikamaru could turn, the gate was closed, the lock locked, and the Hyuuga's sandals could be heard going up the stairs.

There was a moment of silence. Then someone in the corner of the cell shifted, causing Shikamaru to jump with fright. A soft, hoarse, female voice spoke.

"Neji?"

Shikamaru knew that voice, although he heard it very seldom, and not in any recent time. A grimace played on his face, but he knew she could not see it.

"No, Hinata, it's Shikamaru."

A small gasp. "Shikamaru, what are you doing here? Where's Neji?"

Shuffling sounds told Shikamaru that Hinata was sliding towards him, and a second later, fingers lightly touched his face, only to recoil almost instantly.

"I got arrested, for leading an anti-Chaita movement."

"Are you the only one? Did anyone get hurt? Have they arrested anyone before you?"

"Yeah, as far as I know. No, no one's been arrested or hurt."

"…and Neji? Did you see him?"

Shikamaru hesitated, then, slowly, carefully, said, "Yeah, I saw him."

Silence.

"Can you untie my arms? I'm starting to lose feeling in my hands."

"Oh…of course." Hinata, using her hands to guide her, started working on the rope binding Shikamaru's arms behind his back. The cuffs remained intact, glowing a dim blue color.

As the ropes fell away from Shikamaru's red and sore arms, Hinata leaned back against one wall, Shikamaru taking another.

"Um…," she said, quietly. "W-where is he?"

Shikamaru hesitated. How to do this…

"He's with Kokuzoku."

"Is he coming back?"

"…I don't think so."

Hinata let out another tiny gasp. "But why?"

"…Kokuzoku used the halsegan. He's taken control of Neji's mind."

* * *

Two months. Oh. My. Gosh. I'm ashamed to show my face. Well…my internet face. I could give you excuses about how I was finishing up one of my other chapter stories and how I was so busy that I could barely breath…but that would be pointless now. What matters is that I updated, and I'm so sorry it's taken me so long. Really I am.

Now, about the chapter….I don't know what to think. I'd appreciate it if you told me what you thought.

As for the people who told me last time, they are amazing and I owe them so much thanks, I don't even know how to express it.

**Thank you to the infinity power to: siny, Katako-Chan, Kouri Hakumei, LixxyChan, Tensano Hyguuhi, Dragon D., LittleKittyShaoMao, Xia-Shao-Jung, Julie, oxbleachxnarutoxfanxo, AkikoReikou, luver, and Wandering Wonderer.**

So I hope that this chapter can even make up a tiny bit for the long wait, and, now that I'm on spring break and I'm pretty much done with Babes of Neji and Tenten (just the epilogue to go!) I'll have more time for updates. Thanks again, and sorry for any inconvenience.

Until next time! Reading Maid, over and out.


	11. Shattered

I don't own Naruto…

Chapter Ten: Shattered

_They took him. Oh my god they took him. He's gone. What…do I do?_

Ino sunk to her knees, grinding the Konoha dust deep into her knees. Maki tumbled off her lap with a squeal, rolling into the dirt next to her. Ino's blue eyes stared, wide and horrified, at the empty ground before her where a few moments before, there had been several Chaita, her sensei, and her two best friends. But now only one person lay in the dirt there.

Chouji pushed himself up, shaking his head to clear his gaze, cursing.

"Chouji," Ino breathed, her terror in her voice. "Chouji, they took him."

* * *

"WHAT!?" Naruto jumped to his feet, slamming his fists down on the box in front of him, staring in disbelief at the two remaining members of Team Ten standing before him. He felt as though the ground beneath his feet disappeared and he was falling, tumbling down through an infinite darkness. "Shikamaru's _gone_!?"

The members of the Chaita resistance group could not believe their ears. Less than an hour ago, they had separated, celebrating another small victory. Now, they were receiving the worst news they'd had since the Hyuuga fire.

Ino, eyes blazing and hands shaking, slammed her own fist onto the table before her and yelled, "Yes, that's what we just _told_ you! The Chaita kidnapped him using Asuma to try and trick us!"

Naruto stared at his feet, eyes burning a hole into the boards with the intensity of his gaze. "Damn it!"

Sakura put a hand on Naruto's arm, displaying a level of sweetness that was almost Hinata-worthy. "Calm down, Naruto. It's okay."

But this did little to calm the Kyuubi-vessel. He jumped, jerking his arm out of Sakura's grasp, hating having more emotional turmoil added to his already overloaded mind.

Whipping around to face Sakura, he snapped, "How can you even say 'it's okay'? _Shikamaru's gone_! He was the leader! He was the one who came up with all the plans! He was the one who was gonna get us into the Tower so we could rescue Hinata and Neji!"

Sakura, at first affronted that Naruto would take such a tone with her, felt her own temper spark. Glaring up at Naruto, she replied, "He was going to do more than just rescue Neji and Hinata, Naruto. And I _know _he came up with all our plans, but it's not the end of the world! There are other people in this group who can think!"

Both Ino and Kiba found problems with this statement.

Ino, her heart pounding and lip quivering, turned an incredulous gaze to her friend. "What are you saying, that we didn't _need _Shikamaru? That anyone else could do what he did?"

The blond gave a slightly hysterical laugh, a smirk dancing across her lips. "Oh, wait… by 'other people who can think', are you referring to _yourself_? You think _you_ can think like Shikamaru?"

Sakura jumped to her feet, glaring at Ino with eyes like green ice. "So what if I was!?"

Kiba got to his feet, face furious, and snarled at Sakura, "And are you saying that rescuing Hinata _wasn't_ important?"

Sakura turned from one attacker to the other, the intensity of her glare increasing. "How could you think I mean that?" The teen asked incredulously. "Hinata's my friend; of course I want to rescue her! All I meant was that there are other things this group could be doing _on top_ of rescuing them!"

"Oh yeah?" Kiba growled threateningly. "Like what!?"

Sakura, getting very angry now, put a finger to her chin and said in a voice one might use when speaking of something very obvious to someone very dumb. "Oh, well, I don't know…maybe _overthrowing the Chaita_!?"

As Kiba clenched his fists, canine teeth bared, Ino's shrill voice called Sakura's attention back to her.

"That's what Shikamaru was _trying_ to do! What do you think we've been _doing_ for the past three weeks!?"

Sakura's cheeks darkened to the color of her hair and she pointed a shaking finger at Ino. She'd been keeping her real thoughts on the group's actions to herself for weeks, and now, it seemed, was the time to release them.

"We haven't been trying to overthrow the Chaita all this time, Ino, so don't you dare say that we have. Sure it's fun and it gets the Chaita mad, but how is drawing on people's faces supposed to restore Lady Tsunade to power? How is giving the guards sour milk supposed to get rid of Kokuzoku? How is attacking them with Chihuahuas going to solve _anything_!?"

The blond opened her mouth to shout an angry reply, but found nothing to retort. Her face flushed red and her hands shook even harder.

Wearing a triumphant smirk, Sakura continued, "Shikamaru was an okay leader, but he focused too much time on his rescue plans and his diversion plans and not _nearly_ enough time on actually taking down Kokuzoku! He put the safety of just _one_ _jonin_ and _one chunin_, above that of the _entire _village!"

Sakura regretted those words the moment they left her mouth. Ino's face contorted with rage at the slight against her teammate, and if Chouji hadn't held her back, she would have attacked Sakura right then and there. Kiba, likewise, had to be restrained by Shino and Hanabi, although both restrainers were glaring at Sakura with intense anger.

At this point, Tenten got to her feet, eyes blazing and mouth a tight line on her face.

"So what are you saying, Sakura? That Shikamaru should have abandoned Neji and Hinata to rot in that tower?"

Sakura turned to face her newest attacker, ready for battle.

"I'm saying that you're all letting your personal emotions blind you to reason! If you look at the larger picture, then it makes sense to work on taking down Kokuzoku first! This whole situation-."

"But who knows what evils that man could be doing to them? Who knows what torture they could be suffering!?" Lee stood, staring with wide eyes at his childhood crush, not quite believing that she could be saying such things.

Sasuke, at this point, let his hand drift casually toward his kunai holster, preparing himself for anything. Sakura was doing a very good job at making enemies among friends, and even though the Uchiha was all for the freeing of Konoha _and_ the rescue of the missing ninja, he was ready to defend his pink-haired teammate if the need should arise.

Said teammate clenched her fists desperately, looking Lee in the eyes. "But that's the point!" she yelled exasperatedly, desperately, imploring him to see her reason. "We don't _know_ what Kokuzoku's doing in there! We can't even be positive that Neji and Hinata are even _in _the tower! They could be at the Chaita estate, for all we know! They could be in the…the mountains somewhere! They could be here in the village! They could be _dead_!"

Naruto gasped, and even Sasuke's eyes widened at the harshness of these words.

Sakura, adrenaline coursing through her veins from finally speaking her mind, whipped around to look at Ino and Chouji and snapped, "Shikamaru, too!"

She slammed her fists down on a barrel, smashing it to smithereens, and yelled, "_All three of them could be dead and we all would have wasted our time on a hopeless cause, completely abandoning the village that we've all sworn to protect, for the lives of just three people!_"

Sakura closed her eyes, panting slightly, prepared for the onslaught of protests bound to come her way…but nothing came. She then realized how silent the room was.

She opened her eyes and took in the scene.

Tenten and Shino glared at Sakura as though just now seeing the kunoichi for what she really was. Lee looked heart broken, his eyes far wider than usual. Hanabi turned her face away from Sakura, angry tears welling up in her eyes as she clutched at Kiba's arm. The dog boy ripped his arms out of his friends' grips, fists shaking, but he did not make a move. He too turned his face away, glaring angrily at the floor.

Turning to look at Ino, Sakura saw that the girl's eyes were wide and horrified, and tears were beginning to form in their corners; her lower lip trembled and her whole body shook. Behind Ino, Chouji was glaring at Sakura in a similar way to Tenten and Shino.

The harshness of her own words then began to sink in, and Sakura felt her face grow bright red in embarrassment. "I…," she started, unsure of what to say. "Uh…"

Tenten, taking one step toward the younger girl, opened her mouth and spoke in a shaking voice. "The only reason," she said slowly. "That you can say those things is because you have not felt what it's like to be missing a teammate. You may condemn us for being 'blinded by our emotions', but you have no idea," her voice picked up speed, "What it's like to have someone missing like this. You have no idea what it feels like to have someone you lo-." Tenten's voice broke. "To have someone you care about, like we care about Neji, or how they feel about Hinata, or Shikamaru, go away."

Tenten's eyes got very bright. "You still have your whole team around you. You can't possibly understand what we're feeling, so what gives you the right to talk like you do?"

Sakura stared into Tenten's deep, brown eyes, and found herself lost for words.

No one else moved.

Then, before she could stop herself, Sakura breathlessly mumbled, "But…if they're dead…"

"We can't think that they're dead, Sakura," Tenten closed her eyes, concealing just how bright the pair were getting. "Because if we give up hope like that, how would we find the strength to keep fighting?"

Sakura stared down at her feet, wishing she could just slide into the floor and die.

"I…" Sakura found she couldn't continue. Wordlessly, she turned and walked towards the door. Opening the handle, and without looking back, she disappeared into the busy streets of the village outside of Ichiraku's.

Inside, no one moved. Naruto seemed torn, his eyes tortured. A moment later, Sasuke straightened from his position by the wall and followed Sakura's path to the door, but in the frame he paused. Turning to the silent group behind him, he said coolly, "Don't tell us about the next meeting. But if you do decide to attack them…"

He let the sentence hang, but the group got the message. When (if) the time came for the Leaf ninja to rise up and strike the Chaita, the last Uchiha loyal to the village would be on the battlefield beside them.

Shino, the only one to react, gave a minute nod.

Turning, the Uchiha left, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Silently, the group inside Ichiraku disbanded, the broken teams turning to their remaining members for comfort.

Shino, Kiba, Hanabi, and Akamaru disappeared off into the shadows of the city, keeping their fugitive Hyuuga hidden under her now customary dark cloak.

Lee and Tenten, the former shaken to the core by the happenings of the meeting, the latter not betraying any emotions at all, walked slowly away in the general direction of their deserted training grounds.

Naruto, suddenly feeling very lonely, wandered off to find someone he knew.

Ino, Chouji, and a sleeping Maki joined the crowds of people flocking towards home as sunset and the dreaded curfew approached (recently, in response to the increasing number of attacks/pranks on Chaita guards, the curfew for everyone had been pushed back to exactly sunset). Both the Akimichi and the Yamanaka were shaken to the core first from Shikamaru's disappearance, and then Sakura's breakdown. Neither spoke much on the way to wherever they were going, and when they got there, settling down into the familiar roots of their favorite cloud-watching tree, they sat in silence.

Together, they watched the sunset wash its orange and pink light across their beloved, invaded village. The clouds rolled grandly across the sky, turning shades to match the sun and the sky around them. But no matter how cheery the colors or how beautiful the scene, nothing could cheer the blue depression settling into both hearts.

"Chouji," Ino choked, her voice gruff, after sun had sunk halfway down. "Chouji, do you think Sakura was right, about Shikamaru?"

The chubby teen did not answer. In the silence, Ino continued.

"Part of me says that she was dead wrong…but another part of me says that…maybe she has a point."

Chouji's eyebrows shot up and he turned to look at her. She continued to gaze out at the sunset, although her eyes were distant and fogged and Chouji knew that she was not really seeing anything.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"She said that…Shikamaru was thinking too much about rescuing people, and causing diversions, and wasn't thinking enough about how to actually get rid of Kokuzoku. And now that I think about it, I see what she meant."

Chouji didn't say anything.

"Do you realize," Ino said, her voice still crackly. "That no Chaita have been killed since they came here? Not one drop of Chaita blood has been spilled in all of our efforts to hurt them…but thanks to Kokuzoku, our numbers just keep decreasing, while theirs get bigger and bigger."

Now, Chouji had an answer.

"Shikamaru hates to kill people," he said simply, giving a small shrug. "Be they Chaita or any other enemy, he does anything he can to keep them alive."

Chouji leaned back against the tree, staring off into the sunset. "He's not like other ninja, like Sasuke or Kiba, who think of killing other ninja as simply another part of the mission. I'm not trying to criticize them, of course; that's what we were always taught. But Shikamaru doesn't like that. He never has."

Chouj gave a small smile. "And I think that's rubbed off on you and me."

Ino let that thought bring a smile to her lips, but her eyes remained tortured. Turning to face Chouji again, she said, "But what about the second thing she said, about him focusing too much on the distractions and the rescues. What can we say about that?"

Chouji gave another shrug. "I disagree with Sakura. I mean, sure it's taking us a long time, but not because Shikamaru's not trying. You know as well as I do that no matter what the situation is, Shikamaru always comes up with a plan. Just not always right away." Chouji looked up to meet Ino's eyes, noticing how very shiny they were getting. "He just needs time to think."

The sun cast its final rays of light on the village. One ray landed on Ino's pale face, making the tears slowly trickling down her cheeks sparkle. The girl hung her head, letting the tears fall thick and fast down into her open hands.

_How could I have doubted you, Shika? _Ino felt like her heart was breaking, and she wished somehow that she could see the dark-haired boy and apologize. _After all these years, I still have to have someone tell me what you're thinking? It's as if I haven't known you my whole life, haven't been on a team with you for years, haven't trusted my body with you time and time again…_

"Oh, Chouji," Ino sobbed, staring down at her dampened palms. "How come you always know exactly what he's doing, while I always end up in the dark? Why does he always have to carry me along, keep me filled in on what he's doing? Why can't I ever just trust him? How can I say I love him when I can never keep up with him?"

Chouji sat up, scooting closer to his friend, and soon Ino was sobbing into his shoulder, holding him close. When they were younger, Ino would never have even considered doing something like this. But now, Chouji was like a brother, the best friend she or Shika could ever ask for. He had the best shoulder in all of Konoha to cry on.

Chouji patted her gently on the back, letting her cry.

_Well,_ Chouji thought, as Ino's tears drenched his shoulder and the sun completely disappeared. _At least one good thing's come out of Sakura's breakdown. Three more words have been added to Ino's vocabulary. _

I. Love. Him.

* * *

Short update. But there's some ShikaIno, and some NejiTen, and some Sakura…problems. Woohoo!!

**A bagillion hugs from me to each and everyone one of you for being amazing: Dragon D., Music 1s my s0ul, Sakura999, Kouri Hakumei, Tensano Hguuhi, AkikoRaikou, Katako-Chan, siny, Wolora, no one in particular, LittleKittyShaoMao, Wandering Wonderer, xmarachanx, and Donik**.

So…tell me what you guys thought of _this_ chapter.

Until next time, Reading Maid, over and out.

Added 3/26/08: I forgot to mention this the first time, but isn't it kind of ironic that in this story, Sakura's the one who has her whole team, whereas in the actual Naruto show/manga, she's...well...not?


	12. A Change of Plan

**Previously, on ****A Konoha Coup d'Etat****: **

**-Lord Kokuzoku of the Chaita clan has taken over the village with his mind control**

**-Most jonin and ANBU were sent away on missions to get them out of the way**

**-They burned down the Hyuuga estate because the Hyuugas were being troublesome**

**-Hinata, Neji, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, and Kakashi have all been taken by the Chaita**

**-Naruto and crew banned together to try and overthrow the Chaita with Shikamaru as their leader**

**-They cause lots of trouble for the Chaita while trying to obtain information about the whereabouts of there missing loved-ones**

**-Kokuzoku determines that Shikamaru is the leader of the group who has been causing the Chaita so much trouble**

**-Asuma is used to capture Shikamaru**

**-Sakura voices her opinion about the group and Shikamaru's leadership, causing the group to split…**

Chapter 11: Change of Plan

Sakura slammed her fist against the wall, trying to release some of her pent-up emotions, but this act accomplished nothing more than a splintering crack up and down the middle of the practice wall located in Team 7's training ground. The girl hit the wall again, this time with the other fist, leaving another crack, although one not as big as the first. With a whimper of anguish, Sakura pressed her forehead against the rough surface, wishing the brick would just absorb all the conflicted thoughts and emotions spinning in her head.

"Why can't you see the truth?" She whispered quietly, almost to herself. "Why can't you listen to me? Why do you always have to be so STUBBORN!?"

On the last word, Sakura smashed her forehead against the wall as hard as she could. In a burst of dust and pebbles, it crumbled, becoming nothing more than a pile of rubble at her feet. Biting her lip and fighting back tears of hurt and pain, Sakura fell to her knees, hands limp at her sides.

She could not believe what she had done. _How could I blow up like that? How could I let my emotions take such control? How did I let that go so wrong!? _

For the past two or three weeks, Sakura had been building up her argument against Shikamaru's actions. She respected the shadow nin immensely, but could not for the life of her see the point in all the useless missions he had been sending the ACFT on. For a person with a brain like Sakura's, it was nothing short of painful. But no matter how frustrated she became, she had not imagined herself _shouting_ at her friends to see reason, and she had _not_ foreseen their terrible reactions.

As she sat there, wallowing in grief and self-pity, she sensed a body right behind her. Whipping around, fists raised, the girl saw Sasuke standing a few feet behind her.

For a moment, they simply stared at each other, Sakura, dusty and on the verge of tears, squatting next to a pile of rubble, Sasuke, standing the way only he could, gazing down at his teammate through impenetrable dark eyes.

After a minute, Sakura spoke, in a voice that could have been called accusing had it not contained such a wobbly tone. "Why are you here?"

The boy raised one dark eyebrow. "Why are you surprised?"

Sakura, her stomach giving a nervous flip, opened her mouth to speak, but found she had nothing to say. Imagining herself to look foolish, she closed it. She stood.

"Well, if _you're_ here," she said in an acidic voice, "Why isn't Naruto?"

Sasuke's eyebrow flattened and he gave her a reproachful look. "You know as well as I do why he isn't. And it's not because of what you said." He paused. "Although, if I were him and you made such grim predictions about the girl I liked, I would not be standing here now."

Sakura's shoulders slumped and she gave a tiny nod, looking miserable. "I can't believe some of the stuff I said."

Sasuke's eyebrow flew upward once more. He looked at Sakura with a doubtful expression. "Some?"

Sakura's head snapped up and an angry spark jumped into her eyes. "Yes, _some_. I still believe everything I said." Picturing the hurt in her friends' faces, she added softly, "I just wish I had phrased some of it differently."

Sasuke gave a nod and an accepting shrug.

They were silent for another moment. Sakura turned to stare at the pile of rubble. Sasuke walked up beside her. Finally, he said, "So. What are you planning on doing now?"

Sakura shook her head slowly, eyes closed. "I don't know. In my mind, I imagined telling everyone what I was thinking some sunny afternoon when we were all happy, and then having them all see my points without all that shouting and anger. I didn't want Shikamaru to get captured; I was hoping he would agree with me. And I didn't want everyone to end up hating me."

Sakura crossed her arms tightly, trying subconsciously to protect herself from all that anger.

Sasuke removed his hands from his own pockets and mimicked her action, although not crossing his quite as tightly.

"The others may think they hate you now," he said in his quiet, deep voice. "But they don't really. You just hurt them by pointing out the truth. People in pain don't want the truth. They prefer hope. That's why they all reacted the way they did."

Sakura looked up at him. "So you think I'm right?"

The Uchiha nodded, throwing a glance down at her before continuing to stare at the rubble. Sakura gave a small smile, which vanished at his next sentence.

"But I disagree with you on one point."

Sakura's eyebrows shot up, surprised. "Which one?"

"Shikamaru."

The young woman's mouth fell open. She turned to face Sasuke, arms spread out hopelessly before her. "But, you can't think that setting dogs and markers on the Chaita will really get them to go away? I mean-."

Sasuke cut her off.

"I do agree with you on that. But I think, based on all that I've heard about him and my personal experiences while working with him, that he was just using those missions to keep us busy and to annoy the Chaita. You of all people must have realized what a genius he is, and no genius of his caliber would really think those things would drive away the Chaita."

Sasuke looked upward, and Sakura, relaxing her arms, allowed hers to follow. "My theory is that he has been working on a plan from the very start, when he returned from that mission and found the village changed. His brain just works that way; as soon as it sees a puzzle or a problem, it has to solve it. Missions with him are always a bit dull for me because he always has a battle plan completely thought out before the rest of us have even planned our first step." He paused. "But this isn't like a normal mission. He couldn't think of the solution just by closing his eyes and doing that bizarre thing with his hands."

Sakura looked confused. Somehow sensing this, Sasuke touched his hands thumb-to-thumb, fingertip-to-fingertip and held it up for Sakura to see.

"For a problem this big," he continued, "He needed more time. A lot more time, by the looks of it. And that is why he did what he did."

Sasuke looked back at Sakura, who was no longer gazing upward, but whose eyes were now fixed upon her shoes.

"His brain works a little differently than everyone else's. Yours especially."

Sasuke unfolded his arms, placing one hand in his pocket and letting the one closer to his companion hang free. Feeling he had made his point, he did not speak anymore.

For a long time, neither one said anything. The sounds of evening were all around them, mother's calling for their children to come in, vendors calling their end of day sales, Chaita calling the half-hour warning before curfew.

"Do you think the others will forgive me someday?"

Sasuke, thinking about other things, blinked and looked down at Sakura, who was still not looking at him.

He shrugged. "If I were you, I wouldn't let it bother me. They'll come around eventually, once they see you're right."

Sakura turned to look up at him, her eyes a little brighter.

"Of course," he said, as an afterthought, "I wouldn't mention the possibility of Hinata, Neji, and Shikamaru being dead again."

Sakura's face fell and she quickly turned away again.

Sasuke, realizing his mistake too late, opened his mouth to speak, when a new voice broke the quiet.

"Hey, you two, curfew in twenty minutes! Get moving!" Sasuke glared at the guard standing at the entrance to the training ground, but Sakura put a hand on his arm.

Turning around and giving the man a sweet smile and wink, she said, sweetly, "Thanks! We're going!"

The guard huffed and moved away, calling to a pair of children playing ball ahead of him.

Sakura looked up at Sasuke and gave him a small smile.

"Thank you."

Sasuke's cheeks darkened ever so slightly and he turned away, giving a small grunt.

Still wearing that small, hopeful smile, Sakura and the Uchiha walked away from the pile of rubble and out into the emptying streets.

…

…

…

In the circular office once belonging to Lady Tsunade sat a man. His back was pin straight and he was seated at her desk, still as a statue, save the light tapping of one boot on the floor. His hands were folded in front of his face and his hard, silver eyes stared straight ahead of him, fixed on something only visible to his eyes. Although his body was not moving, behind the heartless eyes his mind was whirring.

On the desk in front of the man lay a piece of paper. It was a letter, addressed to Kokuzoku, from the steward who was running the Chaita estates in Kokuzoku's absence. The contents of the letter announced a problem that would force a resolution to be reached for another, larger problem that the man had been trying to ignore for the last several weeks. The steward had been frank, stating that the estates were slipping into disarray and that he needed the women and older children that Kokuzoku had brought to the village back. Without them, the estates' farms and other means of profit would crumble, leaving the Chaita without desperately needed funds.

_But I cannot send them back. I require them here_.

The man began strumming his fingers. _I cannot send them back because, without them, I would lose control over many of my civilians. And that could lead to disaster._

Indeed, if the Chaita had not taken over the minds of so many civilians of Konoha, Kokuzoku doubted he would still be holding his current position of power. He had made a mistake early on in his reign, and it was slowly catching up with him.

Kokuzoku had been planning the coup for many years before he began to take action, smoothing over every detail and covering every problem he could think of. Initially, everything had gone according to plan. It was much easier than he ever expected, taking over the mind of the Hokage. Now, looking back, he realized that this easy take over had made him cocky. He moved ahead in his plans too swiftly, bringing on the guards and the strict enforcement much too soon. It had caused resentment in not only the shinobi, but the civilians as well, something he had not counted on. During the planning stages, Kokuzoku had reasoned that, if he made the coup swift and clean with no major changes to the people's lifestyle, then he would not have to worry about civilians. Instead, he would take over a few of the leading ninja and hope that the rest would follow. He did not count on so many rebels and discontents.

In the early days after the coup, Kokuzoku had made it a little too obvious that something had happened. Especially after the Hyuuga Fire. It was then that the reports began to fly in, stating how unsettled everyone was and how ready they were to rebel. Kokuzoku had then realized that he had to take drastic action. He began a sweep through of the village, taking over as many unhappy civilians as his guards could manage. Unfortunately, even after he had brought in the reserve troops from the estate, there were still enough mutterings to make him uneasy. That was when he had brought in the Chaita women and the children old enough to have even basic knowledge of how to use the halsegan. At the time he gave the order, Kokuzoku had known that this plan would not last for long. It was only a matter of time until his people would begin to tire, and then he would have to really find a solution for the problem he had put off.

And now, it looked like, fate would force his hand.

_But what to do…_

A sharp knock at the door broke Kokuzoku out of his trance. Lowering his hands to the desk and sliding the letter under another stack of papers, he called, "Enter."

In stepped two guards, both wearing the traditional silver robes of the Chaita. The first bowed to Kokuzoku, then stepped back. The second, who looked irritated, stepped forward and leaned his fists on Kokuzoku's desk.

"We need to talk, Lord Kokuzoku."

Kokuzoku slowly looked upward at the man before him, eyes glacial.

"What is it this time?"

The man straightened, folding his arms across his broad chest, so different than the slender, muscular build of most Chaita.

He glared down at Kokuzoku. "My men want out."

The older man arched an eyebrow. "What ever do you mean?"

"I mean," The man, Oku, growled, "Me and my men are tired of posing as your soldiers and we want to go home, with full payment."

As if to prove his point, Oku clapped his hands together and, a second later, the silver gleam in his eyes vanished and was replaced by a deep brown. "We've been here for almost three weeks, and my lads want out. Whoever you were trying to impress with numbers, you must have done so by now. I've boosted your numbers by a good hundred men. Anyone with some kind of sense would have gone by now, and-."

But Oku from the Land of Earth did not finish his sentence. In an instant, he was sent spiraling down a shining silver whirlpool.

For a moment, Kokuzoku also felt as though he were swirling downward; the room spun around him and he was grateful he was seated.

_I am stretching myself too thin_, the elder thought weakly_._ Kokuzoku was now personally in control of seventeen different people, a number unheard of in Chaita history. This immense power, brought on by age and experience, could be very useful in a battle scenario, for which it was intended; however, it was not meant to be stretched out for days without end.

"You will tell your men that you have bargained a new deal. Their pay will double, just as long as they remain without question. If any trouble you, have them arrested." With a flick of his hand, Kokuzoku sent Oku from the office, reinitiating the disguise over his eyes and turning them silvery once more.

The office was silent for a moment. The true guard bowed again to Kokuzoku. "Is there anything you wish, my lord?"

Kokuzoku placed a hand over his forehead, thinking. He needed to solve the problem with Konoha's restless population, and fast. But how to do it…

A sharp rapping started on the door, breaking Kokuzoku's thoughts. In an irritated voice, willing to bet money this was more bad news, the old man bade the visitor enter.

"My lord! I have an urgent message!" A teenage boy, no older than fifteen, stumbled into the room, a message tube grasped firmly in one hand. He rushed over to Kokuzoku's desk and dropped into a ridiculous bow, holding the cylinder up before him like an sacrifice. Kokuzoku reached forward and grasped it, popping it open and unfurling a tightly rolled scroll. He read:

_Spies have been following the Leaf shinobi who were sent out of the village, as you ordered. However, none of said shinobi went to their assigned location to fulfill their missions; instead they have all convened in a valley to the far south of the village. We have, as yet, been unable to determine what they are planning to do. We will continue to keep them under surveillance until further word is heard from you, my lord. _

Kokuzoku carefully place the paper before him.

"Dammit…" He leaned back in his chair and placed both hands softly over his mouth and chin. If _anything_ could have made the situation worse, it was this.

_They are plotting_, the elder mused, staring out one of the many windows. _They must be plotting a way to remove me from power and reclaim their village. _

Kokuzoku let out a long, slow sigh, closing his eyes.

The messenger slowly took several steps backwards, keeping his head down. The guard eyed his master concernedly. "My lord?"

Kokuzoku did not move.

The room was almost painfully silent. Neither guard nor messenger dare speak again. The minutes passed.

Kokuzoku's eyes flashed open.

The boy jumped.

Kokuzoku removed his hands and sat up straight, his eyes gleaming.

"Boy," he said slowly, taking a clean piece of parchment and scribbling a quick note, "Take this to the soldier who sent you immediately." Slipping the paper into the canister, the boy gave a quick bow and was off.

Kokuzoku leaned back in his chair, arms folded on his chest, staring hard at his desk.

The guard took a step forward. "My lord, is there anything I can do?"

Kokuzoku turned to face the soldier, eyes glinting. "Actually, there is. Send word throughout the village that there will be a village-wide meeting held tomorrow afternoon at three o'clock. Say it is mandatory and that any not in attendance will be arrested. All activities and events scheduled for that time will be postponed. It will be held in the Chuunin exam arena. Focus on the ninja still in the village and those civilians not under our direct control however, tell the ones under our control as well, for the sake of secrecy."

The man nodded and left, closing the office door with a small _click_ behind him.

Kokuzoku rubbed his temples softly. If he played his cards right, he may just save his crumbling kingdom.

…

…

…

"Well what the hell are we supposed to do now!?" Kiba had his fists clenched so hard they were shaking. Shino, facing him, kept his demeanor unreadable.

"You need to calm down."

The pair, along with Hanabi and Akamaru, were standing in the wooden entrance hall of Kiba's house. The reality of what had happened at the meeting had finally sunk in, and Kiba was rattled more than either Shino or Hanabi had ever seen.

The dog boy let out a guttural growl and threw his fists to the sides, his shadowed face taking on an almost animalistic quality. "How am I supposed to do that!?" He spat, glowering at his friend. "Hinata's been with Kokuzoku for almost two months, and now our only chance for rescuing her was just shattered, thanks to Shikamaru and Sakura, and you want me to be _calm_?"

Akamaru whined and Hanabi, standing between them, snapped at Kiba, "We want you to stop acting like a child!" She gestured to herself and the bug ninja, face livid. "Do you think _we're_ not upset? Hinata is just as much Shino's teammate as yours, and she also happens to be my _sister_, incase you forgot! But you don't see us howling like children, do you?"

Kiba glared daggers at Hanabi, but stopped shouting.

"I don't believe Shikamaru was _trying_ to get captured, Kiba," Shino added reproachfully, his voice implying his annoyance. "Don't act as though he was."

Kiba unclenched his fists and stared down at his shaking hands. "I didn't _mean_ that. Of course he didn't mean to get captured, but, dammit, look at what's happened! He was the one thinking of the plan, he was the one running everything, and now he's gone, and Sakura…"

He stopped, obviously unable to put his feelings into coherent words.

Hanabi glared down at her feet and snapped in bitter contempt, "I've never liked her, but I never thought she'd turn out to be such a witch. The nerve of her to-."

"We can point fingers, but that's not going to get us anywhere." Shino's voice was calm, but firm. "We need to talk to Ino and Chouji and figure out what we are going to do next. Until then, no more fighting."

Kiba and Hanabi were silent. Shino obviously took this as their consent.

"I'm staying here tonight," he said to Kiba, who nodded dully, already turning towards his own room.

"Sleep wherever you want," he said wearily. "There's plenty of room."

Kiba's mother and sister, along with their dogs, had been sent away on missions within days of Kokuzoku's rise to power. The house was oddly quiet without the constant barking of dogs and shouting of bossy women. Kiba hated his empty house, so Shino stayed there most of the time; Hanabi had taken up permanent residence in one of the guest rooms.

Hanabi ran one hand slowly over Akamaru's soft head, her mind far from her body. Shino watched her carefully for any sign that she was going to lose it, but saw nothing; she was as closed to "weak" emotions (as she called them) as always. Of course, Shino was never one to show his emotions, but he was a little put-off by Hanabi's silence. If his entire family, down to the very last baby, was taken and very possibly murdered and his house burned down, he supposed he would let something show. But from Hanabi…there was nothing.

Leaving the girl to her own thoughts, Shino went to find a place to sleep.

...

…

…

From his seat in the arena, Kokuzoku watched as the entirety of the village of Konoha made its way inside. In order to accommodate everyone, a box had been built in the wall of the arena facing the stands and the battleground. On it was a podium and two chairs: one for himself and one for Tsunade. Chaita guards were guiding people to the stands first and then, when they filled, the rest would swarm over the empty field. It would be a tight squeeze, but, in order for his plan to work, everyone in the village must be present.

In the throngs of people flooding the arena, Kokuzoku managed to pick out the Chaita disguised as civilians. It had been difficult for Kokuzoku's message to be spread to all of these soldiers, because they could not be moved far from their prisoners; but it had all worked out in the end. They were now evenly distributed throughout the crowd, ready to act. Kokuzoku only hoped that the villagers of Konoha would be simple enough to fall for his ploy.

One blond head, bobbing in the sea of people, caught Kokuzoku's eye. Following its progress, the elder felt his eyes narrow.

_Naruto Uzamaki…_

The boy was standing in the crowd on the battlefield with another boy and girl, the former being on the chubby side and the latter blond with a toddler on her hip. Naruto was more solemn than the last time Kokuzoku had seen him, and he looked very worn. The girl with the baby was speaking to him, then became distracted when the babe on her hip began to cry. Shaking his head at the promiscuity of teens these days and the shame of teen pregnancy, Kokuzoku let his eyes wander away from Naruto and company.

The minutes ticked by and, by four o'clock, everyone was squeezed inside; the doors were shut and Lady Tsunade was brought up to the box, along with Shizune. Shizune stepped back to the wall as her mistress walked up to the podium.

"Citizens of Konoha."

A hush swept over the several hundred gathered there as people realized their Hokage was at the microphone, in full Hokage garb and looking as powerful as any Hokage before her. After a moment, Tsunade began.

"Citizens of Konoha, my faithful followers, I suppose you are wondering why you were called here. Well, there is much that I wish to tell you and I felt that, to do you all justice, it would have to be in person. Some of what I am about to say will clear up many confused minds. To begin with, I must apologize for the craziness of the past several months. By no means would I wish to submit you all to such a tense atmosphere and sporadic violence; however, it had to be done, for our village had been invaded."

Gasps were heard from the crowd and a wave of muttering commenced. Tsunade waited until they were quieted to continue.

"We are, as of now, unsure of how the invaders penetrated our defenses, but we are sure that they have been removed. For the past two months, we have been searching for and eliminating them in full and only now that they are gone can we inform you of their presence. Some of you may be feeling angry, that I kept such a vital secret from you. But it had to be done, for you see, the invaders had a power that made informing you all impossible: they had the power of mind control. Yes, mind control. At first, we tried to handle the situation ourselves. However, almost immediately after our discovery, we received a flood of missions and had to send many of our shinobi away; so many, in fact, that we could not continue our investigations, or maintain an acceptable defense around the village. That was when we requested that Lord Kokuzoku come to our aid, and he graciously acquiesced. With the addition of his shinobi, we were able to make some progress in the case. In order to speed up the operation, I decided to give Kokuzoku an official position with some real power behind it, thus instituting the position of Hokage-in-Second. After only a few days of his leadership, I realized I could step back and let him run the situation."

Tsunade paused, letting this information sink in. Kokuzoku's eyes scanned the muttering crowd, focusing on faces, watching.

…

…

…

"Excuse me?"

Tenten, sitting with Lee in the front row of the stands, turned an ear to a man behind her as he spoke to his neighbor.

"I must have dozed off, because I can't remember what Lady Tsunade said, could you…?" Turning her head ever so slightly, Tenten caught sight of an older fellow with a long black beard, wearing a puzzled expression. The man sitting next to him, whom Tenten could not see, replied, "She was apologizing for the strange behavior of the past months. Apparently there was some kind of invader."

The first man scratched his head. "Really," he said slowly, and he obviously had no idea what his companion was talking about.

"Yeah," continued the second speaker. "Sounds like the Chaita really saved our necks. We're lucky they were willing to help us."

"Oh…oh yes.," said the old man, his voice a bit more confident. "Very lucky indeed."

After a moment of silence, Tenten's gaze returned to the main stage; however, her mind was reeling.

_What on earth was that about?_ She wondered.

Stealing a glance at the woman on her left, Tenten gathered that she had been listening also.

"D'ya hear that?" the woman said to her other neighbor. "Those Chaita are something else."

Tenten leaned closer to Lee and whispered, "Were you listening just then?"

She felt Lee nod. "It is very strange. Very strange indeed."

…

…

…

Tsunade continued.

"For several weeks, Lord Kokuzoku and the Chaita worked tirelessly on our behalf, trying to find where our invaders were hiding. Finally, after much toil and hard work, they did, but this, ladies and gentlemen, is where the tragic part of my story comes in. For you see, these invaders did not choose an underground tunnel or dark alley to work from; instead, they were working from inside the heart of the village itself. They had taken over the Hyuuga."

Gasps swept the crowd.

"When Lord Kokuzoku informed me of this, I was torn, but I knew we had to put the safety of the village first. We went into the compound, hoping to take out the invaders as quietly as possible. However, we were not so lucky. A fierce battle took place, during which the estate caught on fire. As I recall, many of you rushed to the scene to try and aid the Hyuuga. Our Chaita allies were forced to keep you back, however, in fear that the invaders escape our fighters. In the end we brought them down, so the battle was won."

From somewhere in the crowd on the ground, a strong, angry male voice called out, "Then why did they capture all the other Hyuuga? And why the hell was _he_ standing on top of Neji and Hinata!?"

The crowd around the voice muttered, his questions being repeated.

Tsunade frowned. Kokuzoku leaned slightly forward in his chair, looking for the body to match the voice.

Tsunade cleared her throat. "The two you mention were not, in fact, Neji and Hinata. They were the leaders of the invaders. You must have been mistaken in the light."

Another voice, equally as male and equally as angry, called out from the other side of the arena, "So what about the _real_ Hyuugas!? What happened to them!?"

"I beg you not interrupt me," Tsunade said, somewhat tersely, turning to this new voice. "The Hyuugas…I was getting to them." She cleared her throat again, and the crowd quieted.

"When planning the sting, we assumed that, once we caught the invaders, their control over our citizens would cease and the prisoners would return to their normal selves. Simple and clean cut. However…no such thing happened."

Tsunade paused, gripping the podium, while the crowd was silent.

"The invaders had maintained control for so long, the Hyuuga's minds were destroyed. As soon as the invaders lost control of a Hyuuga, the Hyuuga perished. They are no more."

The crowd exploded. Yells and curses flooded upon the stage where Tsunade stood, her face expressionless.

"What are you talking about!?" Someone yelled.

"Lies!"

"Noooooo!"

In the stands, Tenten felt her insides shrivel up. The floor beneath her spun wildly; the hands gripping the seat were shaking.

_No…no…she's lying. Neji can't…_

Beside her, Lee jumped to his feet, pointing a shaking finger down at Tsunade.

"NO!" He yelled, a tremor in his voice. "That cannot be true, Lady Tsunade! What are you saying!?"

From where he was standing on the ground with Shino and a disguised Hanabi, Kiba was yelling a stream of curses and accusations at the box, but they were lost amidst the din. His eyes were wild and he seemed quite beside himself.

"No, no, NO!" Hanabi, eyes wide and horrified, shook her head wildly, clutching at her hair. "They can't be dead, she's lying, Kokuzoku's making her say it! No, NO…"

Shino grabbed Hanabi by the wrists, dragging them away from her head. He took the girl's chin and forced her to meet his gaze.

"Hanabi, calm down," he urged, "It's not Tsunade talking, it's Kokuzoku, we don't know if it's true or not..."

But words could not soothe the girl, who stared at her guardian with wild eyes and continued to yell and moan.

"Naruto, hey, Naruto!" Chouji grabbed his companion's elbow as the blond haired teen lost control of his legs and dropped to the floor.

Ino jumped away, causing Maki to gurgle. "Hey, Naruto!"

But their shouts fell on deaf ears. Naruto felt as though he were being sucked down a deep, black vortex. His eyes grew dull and his face fell limp.

_No…no…that can't be right…Hinata…Neji…dead…no…not after all this…no...not possible…Tsunade…Tsunade's lying!…no…not dead…Hinata…_

Tsunade pounded the podium, trying to call the crowd to calm before a riot broke out. But they were working themselves into a state of hysteria. Cries and moans as well as shouts and curses flooded the air, and her calming voice was not loud enough to carry over Tsunade's voice.

Fed up, the woman grabbed the microphone and bellowed, "THERE IS ONE HYUUGA LEFT, AND HE IS HERE IN THIS ARENA!"

Absolute silence.

Not a limb moved, not an eye blinked.

Shino felt the bottom fall out from his stomach. Still in his grasp, Hanabi tensed and instinctively shrunk toward Shino, who placed one arm casually around her shoulder, glancing around for any guards approaching them. There was no way Tsunade could mean Hanabi…

Every nerve in Tenten's body was jingling as she sat on the edge of her seat. Lee remained standing, gripping the edge of the balcony with shaking hands.

Chouji heaved Naruto to his feet as the blond boy stared with huge eyes towards the box.

_One Hyuuga…only one?_

Tsunade gave a small grimace. "Yes, my friends. There is one Hyuuga still alive and thankfully, he has, for the most part, recovered from his ordeal."

_He?_

Tsunade turned toward the side of the box. "Bring him in."

_Not she…not Hinata._

The entire stadium held its breath.

Two soldiers appeared on the box, a cloaked figure between them. Hands pushed back the hood.

…

…

…

_The young man, tall, with long dark hair held in a loose ponytail, sat very still. His legs were folded beneath him and his hands rested gently on his knees. His face was relaxed and his eyes were closed. What was he thinking about? _

_He did not know. He did not think. He simply was. _

_He sat, and he sat, and he sat, lost in an ocean of white and silver. _

_What was his name._

…

…

…

"Neji!!"

The crowd rumbled as Neji Hyuuga stood before them all.

Tenten felt as though her chest were going to explode. "Neji!" she called out again, unable to keep herself from saying his name. Oh, his name, which she had refrained from saying for weeks, felt like a long lost friend on her lips. It was him, it was Neji, he was alright, and he was not dead! To her shock, she felt her eyes begin to water. "Oh my god, Lee, it's him! It's Neji!"

Lee sunk to his knees, staring with wide eyes down at the box. His mouth was moving but no sound came out. Tenten's body was on fire; she did not know what to do with her hands, her feet, her face. Around them, people were muttering and whispering. Some called out to Tsunade, others remained silent. The crowd below was a writhing mass as people expressed either feelings of delight, shock, or dismay.

"Why did it have to be _him_?" A man near Tenten drawled. "Why not someone who wasn't a conceited know-it-all, for god's sake?"

Normally, Tenten would have turned around and given the man a bloody lip, but at the moment, she was afraid to turn her attention away from her friend in fear he would disappear again. A warm glow was rapidly filling her from head to toe.

_Oh, thank you. Oh, Neji._

…

…

…

"Oh god…Oh my god…"

Had Shino not been holding the Hyuuga up, Hanabi would be on the ground. Her knees shook and her face was grey. Her eyes were wide and horrified.

"Shino…"

Kiba turned around, his face the color of Neji. Shino could do nothing but stare at his teammate.

"Kiba," Shino began, but stopped when Tsunade's voice rained down over them all once again.

…

…

…

"Now, everyone, Neji here will speak to you about exactly what happened."

A hush fell over the crowd as Neji moved slowly to the podium. It was then that Tenten noticed he was garbed not in Hyuuga robes, but black and silver.

Neji was silent for a moment, staring straight out over the silent, anxious, anticipating crowd. Then, he spoke.

"What happened to my family was tragic and I will miss them all. They were a huge part of this village and they will be missed. I shall try my best to carry on my family name. In the meantime, I owe Lord Kokuzoku my life, for he was the one who discovered the danger and drove it out. He is a great man and I pledge him my services."

Turning to the silver-eyed man, Neji gave a small bow, then moved away from the podium.

A stunned silence filled the arena. Many people had never heard Neji speak before, and those who had been lucky enough to catch the stray word here or there would never have guessed such a speech was possible from the teen. Those who did know Neji, however, did not buy his speech for one second.

Tenten felt her happy bubble shatter into a trillion pieces.

"What the hell-," Naruto began, his voice low and throbbing, but Tsunade's voice drowned him out.

"Another thing that you are all probably wondering about is the whereabouts of four of our strongest shinobi: Kakashi Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, and Might Gai, who were last seen in public the night of the Hyuuga Fire."

Again, the crowd reacted to these names and it was another minute before Tsunade was able to continue. Leaning down to the microphone, she said, "However, I feel I have spoken enough. I shall let them explain their story to you."

"What?"

"Wait, what did she say?"

"Oh my God, there they are!"

And from behind door in the wall, the four jonin emerged.

The crowd erupted, cheering and screaming for four such familiar and respected faces. Ino and Chouji stood on their tiptoes trying to catch a glimpse of their sensei, but heads and arms were blinding their view. The same held true for Kiba, Shino, and Hanabi, as well as a couple standing in the very back on the floor, both trying to seek out Kakashi Hatake. Tenten and Lee, however, had a perfect view.

"Gai-sensei," Lee whispered. Tenten gazed at her sensei with heavy eyes, slowly digesting what was in front of her.

"They're alright?" she said slowly, hesitantly.

Lee gave a slow nod. "So it would seem. But, Neji…"

Tenten rested her head against the railing, hoping beyond hope that the thought creeping into her mind was wrong, dead wrong. But…

"Hello, everybody. It's good to see you all again." Kakashi was lounging casually against the podium, looking exactly the same as he had when he had been captured several weeks before. Or, had he even been captured?

"So," the shinobi continued, adjusting his mask a tad. "I suppose we're here to tell you all what happened. Now, apparently, a good number of you have been under the impression that Lord Kokuzoku and the Chaita are bad people and that they attacked the Hyuuga and burned down their house and captured myself and my companions and have basically taken over the village. Well, we are here to tell you that that is wrong."

…

…

…

Slowly, at the back of the crowd, Sasuke Uchiha turned away from the podium to face the wall and began to knock his head against it. _You have got to be freaking kidding me…_

Sakura put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him away.

…

…

…

Kakashi stepped back and Kurenai took his place, smiling around at all the people.

"Kakashi is right. You see, for a small while, we believed that as well. The night of the fire, it appeared to us that the Chaita were, in fact, attacking the Hyuuga. That is why we rushed in to attack the Chaita. As many of you saw, that did not end so well on our part. The Chaita trapped us, but not because they were the bad guys. Because we were going to aid the Hyuuga, it appeared to the Chaita soldiers that we were aiding the enemy. For all they knew, we could have been victims of the invaders' mind control. They could not take any chances. The Chaita were simply doing their job: protecting all of you."

A second later, Asuma's dull rumble rolled through the arena.

"It took the Chaita a while to really make sure we were not under the control of the enemy; that is why it has taken so long for us to return. But that is all behind us now, and we can move on."

Although it was indeed her sensei's voice ringing in Ino's ears, she could not bring herself to accept that it was indeed Asuma. Memories of Shikamaru's capture were flashing in and out of her head and a queasy feeling was rising up in her stomach as the people around her nodded and dawned looks of understanding.

_They believe him. These people believe all of it, even though it's all just a bunch of lies. We have to do something._

"Chouji, we have to stop this, w-."

"HEY, LORD KOKUZOKU, LISTEN UP!"

…

…

…

_Tell me it's that Uzamaki character._

Kokuzoku rose from his chair and stared in the direction of the voice. A puff of smoke erupted in the left half of the crowd and said Uzamaki popped up from the crowd, apparently balanced on someone else's shoulders. The insolent lad was glaring daggers at the box and had one finger pointed directly at the Chaita.

_Bring it on, Naruto Uzamaki. I'm ready for you_.

Asuma looked up from the podium, then stepped back, allowing Tsunade to reclaim the microphone.

"How dare you speak to Lord Kokuzoku in such a manor, Naruto Uzamaki!" She said fiercely, directing the crowd's attention towards the blond.

"I have a good reason, Lady Tsunade! But I don't know why I'm calling you that because you're not really Lady Tsunade, are you!? Am I right, Koku-whatever!?"

With a leap, Naruto soared over the crowd and landed on the rail of the box, one hand on his hip, the other pointed directly at the old man, who took a step backwards, arms up in a surrendering manor. Diving forward, Naruto seized the microphone and turned to face his village, arms wide.

"Hey, everyone, guess what? I've got some big news for you all: Lady Tsunade is lying! About just about everything!"

A wave of gasps and mutters broke over the crowd.

"But don't be mad at her," Naruto continued, his voice filling every inch of the arena. "Because it's not her fault. You see, she was right about the invaders who can control people's minds, but they didn't really take over the Hyuugas. No, they went right to the top and took over Lady Tsunade!"

More gasps and several screams.

"And it wasn't some unknown shinobi; the person responsible is right here, within this very arena!"

More screams. Naruto swiveled to once again point an accusing finger at Kokuzoku.

"Right there!_Lord Kokuzoku_!"

The anxious energy filling the arena a moment before shrank almost instantly. People stopped yelling and muttering. They stared at one another, confusion evident on many faces. But Naruto did not seem to notice.

"It's been Kokuzoku from the beginning! He and those Chaita came in here months ago and slowly took over everything! Even a lot of you were under his control, you just didn't know it! But some of us did know what was going on, and now you're finished, Kokuzoku! You're secret's up!"

Naruto paused, panting, and expected to hear cheering and the sounds of an angry mob forming behind him. But instead…nothing. Confused, he turned around.

Someone yelled, "Why should we believe you!?" Other voices echoed their agreement.

Naruto's face fell. "What do you mean? Why wouldn't you believe me?"

Tsunade chuckled softly and was handed another microphone.

"Naruto, think for one second. You're trying to tell these people, you, a single chunin, that their Hokage and five others of the most respected Jonin in the village are lying to them? And that we have been for months?"

"Well, yeah! B-."

"And then, you accuse Lord Kokuzoku, who has just helped the village out of a terrible catastrophe, of trying to take over the village with mind control? And you say that _I _am under his control? Even though I'm speaking to you right now of my own free will and words?"

"Yeah, b-."

"_And_, you're saying that you and several other people in the village _knew_ that this was happening? And yet, you never said or did anything to try and stop Lord Kokuzoku, or share this information with the rest of the village. Is that right?"

A smattering of snickering was heard from the crowd.

"NO! It's true!" Naruto yelled, disbelieving he could be losing the support of the village. "Look, he's taken over Tsunade, he's taken over Shizune, and Gai and Kakashi and Kurenai and Asuma and Neji! Just LOOK at them!"

Naruto threw an arm at the Hyuuga, standing several feet away from him on the box.

"That's not the Neji I knew before the fire! He's changed! Can't you see?"

Tsunade turned to look at Neji, who stood there, pale, silent; a haughty look on his face, arms folded across his chest, leaning against the wall. She turned back to Naruto.

"I see no difference from the 'old' Neji."

More laughs from the crowd. Naruto let his arms fall to his sides, a crestfallen look spreading on his face. Tsunade snickered again.

"And you wonder why they won't believe you."

Tsunade turned to face the crowd. "Lord Kokuzoku is an honorable man whom I trust, and you all should trust him too. He…"

"Let's go, Chouji." Ino hiked Maki onto her hip, planted a kiss on her forehead, and marched forward, Chouji right behind her.

"Lady Tsunade, I believe Naruto! I believe him, and I believe Kokzuoku-."

…

…

…

Kokuzoku turned and saw the blond girl and chubby boy from before fighting their way through the crowd toward the podium, yelling their support. The people left in their wake had confused and skeptical looks on their faces.

_All right, this has gone far enough. Come, boy._

…

…

…

"LADY TSUNADE!"

A new voice, male, with a hint of a drawl, echoed throughout the arena, drowning out the voices of Naruto and Tsunade. Everyone turned, trying to find the source of this new voice. Then someone yelled.

"Up there!"

Heads turned. Tenten and Lee, up in the stands, followed the shouts and found their gazes resting upon the upper rim of the arena at a diagonal from the box. There, silhouetted against the sky, was the outline of a figure.

"Who is it?" Lee wondered, squinting in the person's direction.

"I can't tell," Tenten whispered, but her eyes soon flew back to the stage, where the person who was supposedly her teammate still stood. "I don't know who it is."

"Hanabi, can you see?" Shino murmured, gazing up at the silhouette. The girl lifted her head from his jacket and stared upward.

"It's…uh…oh, no!"

"What?"

Hanabi's lip gave an uncharacteristic quiver and she covered her face in her hands.

"Who is it?" Shino insisted, slightly alarmed now.

"It's S-shikamaru."

…

…

…

"Lady Tsunade, your rule over this village has ended," the voice called, and the whole arena rang with the sound of it. "Prepare to die!"

...

…

…

Although half the arena still did not know what was going on, the words, "Prepare to die!" caught most people's attention. Screams and shouts rent the air as the figure, now identified as the shadow ninja, leapt from the roof and flew right towards the platform where the Hokage stood.

Ino did not see Shikamaru until he was nearly on top of Tsunade. Even if she had, she would not have reacted any differently. Both jaw and toddler dropped, the former hanging open and the latter landing with a thump on Ino's shoe, then crying to be picked up; but neither Ino nor Chouji heard.

Both were staring with open mouths as their teammate, their fearless leader, their best friend, plummeted towards their Hokage with an open kunai, aimed right at her chest.

Naruto was too dumbstruck to do anything other than stare. Nobody moved, save one being.

"Nooo!!!"

At the very last second, Lord Kokuzoku threw himself forward, planting himself between predator and prey. The next instant, the point of Shikamaru's kunai had sunk right into his chest.

For a moment, not a thing moved.

Then chaos erupted.

"Lord Kokuzoku! No, what have you done!?" Kokuzoku fell backwards, blood spurting from the wound, into Tsunade, who supported him while he yelled in agony. In a flash, Neji and Asuma were on Shikamaru, arresting the kunai from him and pinning him to the ground. All the while, Shikamaru was yelling, cursing Tsunade and Kokuzoku for torturing the village this way and for bringing hell to them all. Asuma roughly shoved a gag into his student's mouth, preventing any further slander, while Neji secured his wrists.

All around them, the crowd was going absolutely crazy. People were shouting, asking questions, half the arena still had no idea what on earth was going on while the other half could not believe their eyes.

All of a sudden Chaita guards wearing their silver garbs emerged and tried to settle the crowd while a good number rushed to the box.

Amidst all the chaos, hands grabbed Naruto and heaved him off the box into the writhing crowd.

"Hey-," he began, outraged, but a pale hand covered his mouth.

"Shut up, dumbass, or else you'll get arrested as well."

Naruto's eyes widened as Sasuke removed his hand and dragged the blond away from the box and the many Chaita swarming it.

Throwing a glance behind him, Naruto saw Sakura dragging a shell-shocked Chouji and Ino away as well, Chouji clutching a screaming toddler under one arm.

"But wait!" Naruto yelled, coming to a sudden stop. "Neji and Shikamaru are _right there_, we have to-."

"We'd never be able to pull it off now," Sasuke snapped, resuming the dragging. "And if we get caught, the whole thing is over. We have to get out of here now."

And although it killed him, although it went against everything he believed in, Naruto gave in and let himself be dragged away, through the chaos, out the arena, and out into the empty streets of his tainted village to hide.

………………………………………

Oh my. Well, hello, readers! Those of you who found it inside you to actually come back to this story. Did anyone even remember what was going on? I've had that happen with some stories I've read, so I figured a recap would be helpful.

I won't try to explain to you what's been the cause of such a ridiculous wait. I think the first cause was school, followed by this incredible review that made me need to pause and rethink where I was going with the story. I think that review was in April…and now it's November. But I'm glad I received such a review, because I really was just blundering around in the dark with my keyboard. I had a vague idea of what I wanted to happen, but not much more. Now I kind of know. Woohoo!

So, now, I shall thank everyone who reviewed the last chapter and who are the most patient readers in the entire world. Those who didn't review are patient too, though, and I love them just the same.

**xmarachanx, Music 1s my s0ul, siny, Chinese-otakufan, Theo Hart, Katako-Chan, Kouri Hakurmei, FujixSaku0709, LittleKittyShaoMao, Wandering Wonderer, Dragon D., AkikoRaikou, LixxyChan, Tensano Hyguuhi, crazed5cookie, No on specific, tgun, S., Auntie_Bean, TENGOKUxHEAVEN, Shinako Hyuga, and Erendyl. **

So, yeah. Anyone ever heard of NaNoWriMo? …that's what I'm gonna try to do this month. But with life happening right now, who knows if that's gonna happen. For anyone who hasn't heard of it, go check out the website! NaNoWriMo . org.

Let's think…anything else I wanna say? Don't think so. Tell me what you all thought of this chapter, pretty please, so that I can continue to make this story better!

Reading Maid, over and out. 

Oh, and by the way, this is the longest chapter for any story I've ever written. I wanted to make it a good one, since I'd made you all wait so long.


	13. A Soggy Interlude

Naruto's not mine.

Chapter 13: A Soggy Interlude

Rain poured down on Konoha. The night after Tsunade's meeting, the clouds had rolled over the village like a sweeping mass and had released their contents over its confused and frightened inhabitants.

"I swear, it was that Nara kid, the one with the shadows! I was right there by the stage, I _saw_ him try to kill Lady Tsunade!"

The Ramen Man, wiping his counter with a damp rag, shook his head slowly. "I hear ya, Ted, but Shikamaru? I can't believe he would do such a thing."

Ted took a long slurp from his noodles before continuing. "I thought the same thing, man, but I know what I saw. These are strange times, my friend."

"No kidding."

A soldier in Chaita uniform walked slowly past them, eyes swiveling all around.

"Evening, good citizens. Anything to report?"

"No, sir," said Ted, giving the soldier a salute. As the Chaita walked away, Ted said, "Now I may be uncertain about a lot of stuff at the moment, but one thing I _do_ believe is that those guys right there are good. They're good. They were right there when that kid attacked the Hokage; Kokuzoku even took a kunai for her! I mean, if that's not devotion…"

The Ramen Man gave a dull nod, but did not say more. Eventually Ted finished his meal, left his money, and trudged off into the drizzling gloom. The Ramen Man gave a sigh and leaned heavily on his counter. His eyes drifted over to the wall, where a mandatory poster was pinned. On it were three pictures, under the headline WANTED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER AND HIGH TREASON: Naruto Uzumaki, Ino Yamanaka, and Chouji Akimichi.

"I don't believe it," he whispered softly, resuming his chore. "I just don't believe it."

…

…

…

A hand grabbed Shino on the shoulder. The boy whipped around, muscles tensed. He found himself facing a Chaita, who held a poster before his eyes and said gruffly, "Excuse me, citizen. Have you seen these three traitors?"

For what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Shino stared into his year mates' faces.

He shook his head no and the guard nodded briskly. "If you see or hear anything, please report it. We have proof that they were involved in the assassination plot on Lady Tsunade. Good day!"

Shino continued on his way and a moment later, heard the guard inquire about Naruto, Ino, and Chouji to another citizen.

Shino let out the most miniscule of sighs. The Village's situation, it seemed, was going from bad to worse and was about to take the plunge to disastrous. The chances that a rebellion of any kind was going to take place were also rapidly diminishing. It seemed that every day, fate threw something new at them. Once again, the list of obstacles in the way of their freedom replayed itself in the boy's mind.

_Shikamaru was captured and being charged with treason/murder by a cruel, heartless dictator. _

_Three of the remaining members of the rebellion group were wanted for treason and were being forced to hide in the basement of Kiba's house…for now, at least, because it was only a matter of time until the Chaita made the connection to the Inuzukas and searched the house. _

_Kiba, Naruto, and Hanabi were beside themselves with a mixture of distress, anger, and hopelessness at the news that Hinata Hyuuga was dead, even though Shino reminded them constantly that they had no proof what Kokuzoku had said was true. _

_The general consensus was that even though it was obvious Neji Hyuuga was alive, it was even more obvious that he was under the control of Kokuzoku, as were Gai, Kurenai, Kakashi, and Asuma. _

_Based on eyewitness accounts from Tenten and Lee and some hard thinking by the rest of the group, it appeared that the Chaita had released their control of many, if not most, of the citizens of Konoha. Despite this change, almost all were now turned against the rebels and saw the Chaita as gods. _

_Sasuke and Sakura had returned to the group and no mention was made of the fight. Shino did not know if people really had forgiven and forgotten, or if they simply chose not to bring back the tension. _

_The only rebels that could walk the streets of Konoha and __not__ get arrested were himself, Kiba, Tenten, Lee, Sakura, Sasuke, and Tyron. _

Keeping his face down and his ears open, Shino dragged his feet through the muddy street.

…

…

…

The rain continued to fall, drenching the village to the bone. Through dark blue eyes, Tyron watched countless drops of water cascade off leaves and onto the muddy ground. He flexed his back against the rough bark of his umbrella, letting out a low sigh. He supposed he should be out doing something, checking in with the others, observing the Chaita, gathering information. But it seemed the weather had cast a cloak of grey over him and he could not bring himself to move from his spot under the tree. He had planned to spend the afternoon in the practice fields but the rain had caught him and for the past hour, at least, he had done nothing.

The whole situation seemed so hopeless. When Tyron saw Naruto stand up at the assembly and call out Kokuzoku, the red head believed the climax to their story had finally arrived. Kokuzoku was finished, the secret was out. But he had been very wrong. If anything, the plot had taken another turn for the worse, leaving the protagonists discouraged and alone. Kokuzoku and the Chaita, on the other hand, could not be looking at a brighter horizon. As the heavens cried, Tyron tried to see how the rebels could reclaim their village, but nothing of potential came to mind.

A fat droplet, having successfully navigated its way through the dense foliage overhead, landed on Tyron's nose, jarring him from his reverie. Blinking, rubbing his nose with a sleeve, Tyron glanced around him and saw two figures in the practice field he had abandoned. An instant later, his foggy mind identified them as Tenten and Lee.

As he watched, the two chunin stretched out and began to spar. Tyron could not help but feel impressed by their discipline, as well as feel a small twinge of guilt for not being productive. He did not berate himself too strictly, though, for, as he was reminded every day, Tyron lacked something that pushed the other rebels the hardest.

The members of his usual team, a girl named Coru and a boy named Voorn, had been in the ranks of ninja sent away on missions. As far as Tyron knew, they were currently deep in the mountains of Earth country. He did not know exactly what dangers they faced so far away, but at least Tyron knew they were far away from the clawing hands of greedy Chaita.

\

The rest of the rebels did not enjoy that luxury.

Staring at Tenten and Lee spar, Tyron wondered how they must have felt upon seeing Neji at the assembly. He had not been close enough to the pair since then to really know what they were like now, unlike several other incomplete teams. Kiba, Hanabi, and Naruto were beside themselves at the news of Hinata's death. Naruto, confined to the Inuzuka's basement, was likely to tear down the walls in the next few days due to pent up emotions and energy. Since the assembly Hanabi had not left her makeshift bedroom where she lay, staring at the ceiling with blank eyes. Kiba, the only one of the three not confined to the house, was in and out constantly, fluctuating from silent and brooding to loud and confrontational.

A slow rumble of thunder sounded in the distance. Tyron glanced upward, then slowly got to his feet, shaking stiff limbs. The thunder was his cue to get going. Throwing a glance at the pair still at battle on the court, Tyron sloshed away, hands in pockets, bright head bowed.

…

…

…

"For the millionth time, Naruto, you can't go outside! There are Chaita everywhere asking about you. There's one walking around outside the house! Walk out and you'll be arrested in three seconds!"

Before a scarlet faced Naruto could voice his angry reply, the equally furious Kiba turned on his heal and left, slamming the door behind him. Stomping through his house, he was out on the open street in seconds. For a moment he stood on the steps, letting the cool rain drench his hot face. He closed his eyes and let out his breath. Even after all these years, Naruto could call out his temper like no other. The Inuzuka had hoped that the seriousness of the situation would have made Naruto think for once and not act like such an idiot. He had been right for a while, at least, but the assembly had reduced Naruto to nothing but an irrational idiot.

Thinking of the assembly sent a wave of nausea through Kiba. Not wanting to linger on the topic, the teen gave his head a rough shake and, growling, stomped forward, his sandals squelching into an inch of mud.

An anxious _yip_ from behind made Kiba turn. Akamaru was standing in the doorway, looking anxiously after his partner. Kiba gave a small smirk, knowing how much his dog hated the rain, and shook his head. The canine yipped again, this time sounding much happier, and returned inside, kicking the door closed behind him.

Outside the gate, Kiba saw the aforementioned Chaita, taking shelter from the rain under a neighbor's roof. Kiba sneered at the guard before sloshing off in the opposite direction, letting his feet go where they pleased.

…

…

…

"Why do you push Kiba like that, Naruto?" Chouji asked from his seat on the floor. He was staring at the blond boy with a reproachful gaze as Naruto sent a stream of curses after Kiba. Naruto swiveled around to face the Akimichi, glowering. He opened his mouth to answer, but found he had nothing to say. He growled ferociously and began to pace.

"Because I hate being down here!" Naruto shouted angrily. "Because I can't do anything in this stupid basement! Because I have no idea what's going on up there! Because-!"

Chouji glanced at Ino, seated a little to his left. In her lap she held Maki, whose eyelids were beginning to droop. At least, they had been before the shouting match between Naruto and Kiba. Chouji could understand Naruto's frustration at being cooped up; he and Ino were in the same boat. Ino gave a small shrug, blue eyes dull. She had nothing to contribute to this rant.

"Because the assembly went so _wrong_! Because Neji and Shikamaru are being controlled by that bastard! And because Hi-."

The raging boy stopped pacing, eyes very bright, his body heaving with each shuddering breath he took. "Hinata-."

Chouji looked away and Ino closed her eyes, burying her face in Maki's hair. A tense silence filled the small cellar.

With an agonized roar, Naruto swiveled to his right and plowed his fist right into the stone wall.

The room around them shook, the ceiling moaned, Maki wailed, bits of debris came crumbling onto their heads. From above came the sounds of a dog whining and barking. The ground beneath their feet seemed to ripple with the impact of the blow.

When it was quiet, Ino opened her eyes, bits of rubble falling from her hair and shoulders, and glanced towards Naruto. The wall he had attacked bore a deep hole the width of Naruto's fist and the length of his arm. Around the hole the wall was cracked and broken, fragments of rock dribbling to the floor. Naruto himself was crouched on all fours at its base, his head hanging low and his shoulders shaking quietly.

At a loss, Chouji and Ino remained where they were, gazing everywhere but at the weeping boy.

…

…

…

Kiba stopped walking and glanced up, wondering where his feet had taken him. His stomach sank when he saw what lay before his eyes.

"The Chaita tower...," he muttered.

_Wait…when did it become the Chaita tower? It's Tsunade's tower. _Kiba gave his head a small shake, water flying from his soaked locks.

He lifted his gaze once more to the imposing structure and his mind wandered back to the assembly.

"_There is one Hyuuga left, and he is here in this arena!" _

Those words echoed in Kiba's mind, striking a blow with each reverberation.

_Neji. The last Hyuuga. _

The thought sent chills up Kiba's spine and a cold sensation spread up from his toes.

_Why did Neji live? Why him and not Hinata? _

A small voice told Kiba that he should not begrudge the other boy his life, and some small part of Kiba was grateful that not all the Hyuugas had been wiped out. However…

Although it filled him with a sick feeling to think it, had _he_ been given the choice of who would be the last Hyuuga alive…if it had been between Neji and Hinata…

Hinata's face swam in his mind's eye, the way it looked before the Chaita had ever invaded Konoha. She laughed, she smiled, she fussed over him after a particularly violent mission. She rubbed Akamaru's ears and scratched his belly; she knocked Kiba to the ground during practice and then burst into tears. She blushed with embarrassment when Naruto was near her, smiled as he walked away…She cried into his shoulder after her father rebuked her for not becoming a chunin after her second examination. She was silent the first week of their genin squad, then giggled when Akamaru rubbed against her leg.

Kiba stared with anguished eyes at the tower, stark in contrast to the grey clouds around it.

Had Hinata really died in that tower? After months of captivity had her body finally succumbed to whatever tortures it had suffered? Or did the Chaita end it themselves?

Had she even been kept alive for all this time? How could he know? Maybe she was killed the night of the fire, all those weeks ago. Maybe she had tried to escape and had perished in the process.

An infinite number of maybes existed. Kiba felt nausea rising as all the possibilities of Hinata's death played themselves over and over in his head.

Hinata, gaunt and skeletal, begging a crumb of food from Chaita guards before crumpling to the floor, utterly spent.

Hinata, her beautiful face contorted in pain as unimaginable instruments of torture were used on her for mere Chaita entertainment.

Hinata, bound and blindfolded, a katana sinking into her pale, vulnerable neck, severing head from torso.

Kiba's vision swam and his hands began to tremble.

Hinata, a lifeless corpse, bloodstained and broken, left to rot in a dark dungeon.

"Stop it! Stop!"

Hinata, pale, bruised, stripped of everything, surrounded by sneering Chaita soldiers.

Hinata-

"STOP!"

Kiba dropped to his knees, staring at his trembling hands, cold tears mixing with the rain on his cheeks.

"Oh god, Hinata, no! No, no, NO!"

It was too much, too much to bear, too much emotion. Kiba felt his insides would just shrivel up and die, just like Hina-.

"NO! No no no no…"

The young man did not realize his cries were audible until a hand touched his shoulder and a calm, familiar voice said his name.

Kiba jumped and looked up into the hooded face of Shino.

"Shino," he said, wild eyed, not quite able focus on his teammate. "Shino, Hinata…"

The insect shinobi stared down at his friend, his teammate, his brother. He said, softly, "Have the Chaita ever spoken the truth before? Why do you believe them now?"

Kiba stared up at Shino as he let the reasonable questions sink in, let them penetrate his grief-seized mind.

_He's right,_ Kiba slowly realized as his panic subsided._ What am I doing?_

After a moment, wiping his face on his drenched sleeve, Kiba got to his feet, ignoring the mud now caked onto his legs. He stared the taller boy in the eye, trying to absorb some of his calm and resilience.

"I don't know." Kiba said, shakily, jamming his hands in his pockets, feeling slightly embarrassed by his breakdown. "Thanks, though," he added gruffly.

The droplets slid from Shino's dark glasses as he gave a short nod. He moved his gaze from Kiba, surveying the few people on the rainy street. His attention caught on a familiar face.

"Kiba," he said quickly.

The shorter boy glanced up, alerted by the urgent note in Shino's voice. "What?"

Shino bobbed his head to the right and Kiba turned. "Oh, shit."

Two Chaita guards were headed towards the tower, escorting between them a young woman. Her blond hair and its unusual style were familiar to the boys, as was the enormous fan attached to her back. It seemed the already complicated plot line of their story had decided to take another dramatic turn. Temari of the Sand had finally arrived.

……………………………….

…Hello, everybody. Yeah, it's been a while. I'm sorry, I'm trying as best as I can. I know this chapter's not much more than rain and angst, but I figured I would give you something to sort of hold you over. Or at least, try to hold you over. Just like everyone, I'm being consumed by school and stuff…ugh. I'm thinking a lot more about the chapters before I post them too. I don't want to trap myself in an unfixable corner.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! You are the most patient, devoted readers out there.

**Xmarachanx, oOoAleXandRiAoOo, The Laughing Phoenix, Music 1s my S0ul, Mistress ToastWeasel, Katako-Chan, No one specific, Wandering Wonderer, The Elven-Spear, siny, LixxyChan, Kouri Hakumei, Shinako Hyuga, Tensano Hyguuhi, Akiko Raikou, champylin, S., and HorikawaEri. **

Not promising anything now except that I will finish this story. There are no doubts in my mind about that. Until next time!

Reading Maid, over and out.


	14. A Frenzy of Fleeing

I do not own Naruto.

Chapter 13: A Frenzy of Fleeing

_How much worse will our situation be if Temari is put under Chaita control?_

The sudden nausea striking Shino's stomach gave him an answer. He muttered urgently to Kiba, "We can't let them get her."

The other boy nodded, understanding the immediate gravity of the situation. He stared at the small group as they approached, eyebrows contracting slightly. "You go and tell the others to move. Maybe into the forest would be the best place."

Leaving no time for Shino to disagree and offer himself as the sacrifice, Kiba continued sharply, "They need your brain more than my temper right now so don't waste your breath. Akamaru can smell me out later."

But before Kiba could march forward dramatically, every inch the sacrificial lamb, Shino was gone in a flash of grey. Kiba sighed, a small smirk tugging one corner of his mouth upward.

As the bug ninja turned the corner a moment later, he heard a small explosion behind him, immediately followed by shouts, screams, and the clash of metal. Knowing the clock was ticking, Shino darted off through the sparse, muddy streets.

…

…

…

Akamaru greeted Shino at the door. Shino breezed by the dog and into the basement.

"We have to go. Now."

Ino and Chouji, huddled in the corner, jumped a foot in the air before scrabbling to their feet, clutching the toddler between them. Naruto turned to Shino from where he lay, sprawled in the middle of the floor.

"What happened?" He asked, leaping to his feet and hurrying to the door, small bits of rubble dropping from his clothes and chakra rushing to his antsy hands.

"We've had an unexpected visitor," Shino muttered quickly, turning and trotting down the hall towards Hanabi's room. Banging the door open, he said swiftly, "Hanabi-."

The startled girl sat up from her bed of miscellaneous blankets, rubbing swollen eyes with one hand while whipping out a kunai with the other. When she saw whom the invader was she relaxed, but Shino's urgent tone alerted her to further danger. In one fluid motion she was on her feet.

"What?"

"It's not safe here anymore," Shino resumed in a low, urgent tone. "You've got to leave."

Hanabi's fine eyebrows shot upward, disappearing into her messy black hair.

"Shino-."

The other three fugitives had followed him and now stood behind him, confusion evident on all faces.

"Temari arrived this morning," Shino said quietly. "The Chaita were taking her to the tower and we decided to get her on our side before she was forced onto theirs. Kiba was taking care of that, so the Chaita will know he's against them. Their next move should then be to search his house, which all of you outlaws currently occupy. Now let's go."

Although his mind still held unanswered questions, Naruto pushed them aside. "Where do should we go? The forest?"

Shino blinked, thinking rapidly, then nodded. "Grab some supplies."

"On it."

As Naruto dashed away, Ino said anxiously, "We should probably split up, right?"

Shino nodded again. "We'll meet by the Third's pond by sunrise tomorrow. Take your time; once we're out of here, we want stealth not speed."

In a matter of minutes, the five rebels, accompanied by baby and dog, stood in the entrance hall, shouldering small packs of supplies.

Shino studied Ino and Chouji for a moment, the latter securing their squirming charge into a sling on the former's back. Shino wondered if this would be the last time he saw his classmates of so many years. They had both become admirable shinobi, of course, having come this far. Even after losing the leader of their squad, they had stood strong. But at this moment, they were tired, emotionally distraught, and had their faces plastered on hundreds of wanted signs posted throughout the city. There was no way of knowing now who would help the fugitives and who would turn them in. No one could be trusted.

Shino mused quickly over mentioning this fact, but did not want to hurt their pride. Instead, he said briskly, "The Third's Pond."

They nodded, blue and black eyes gleaming.

Shino nodded in return, a small grimace on his face. "Alright."

As he and Akamaru turned to leave, he heard four sets of feet set off, Ino and Chouji out the back door through the kitchen, Hanabi and Naruto through an upstairs window. He would meet up with the Hyuuga and Naruto several blocks away behind a small grocery store.

Closing the solid, sturdy door, emblazoned with the Inuzuka symbol, behind him, Shino felt a small twinge. Kiba's house had been a constant safe-haven for the resistance group since the beginning. Shino almost felt guilty abandoning it to greedy Chaita hands.

Reluctantly, a light drizzle making his hair and glasses glisten, Shino walked out onto the dreary, muddy street.

…

…

…

_The Day Before Lord Kokuzoku's Meeting Was Called: _

_Hinata had no idea what time of day the guards had arrived at the cell, so she had no idea how long Shikamaru had actually been gone for. No explanation had been made for her companion's sudden removal; jerking him out of sleep, the guards had dragged him out of the cell and up the stairs before Hinata really knew what was happening. When a guard came down later with her bread and water, Hinata tried to ask him what was going on. _

_"Where did you bring Shikamaru?" _

_Luckily for her, it was the nice guard. He was kinder than the rest and never yelled at or punished her. Hinata had never gotten a clear look at his face due to the lack of light, but he seemed younger than the other guards. _

_The man hesitated when she asked him and Hinata thought she was not going to get an answer. _

_"Lord Kokuzoku wishes to use him for something," he said finally, slowly, cautiously. _

_Hinata sat up a little straighter, gripping the bars tightly and straining to see his face clearly. "Do you know what?" _

_The man shook his head. "No." _

_Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out several slices of orange and handed them to Hinata through the bars. "I managed to get these for you. Don't let them go to waste." _

_Hinata's mouth watered as she took the precious slices of fruit into her grimy hands. She felt her throat tighten. _

_"Thank you," she said tightly. _

_With a brisk nod, the guard turned. At the foot of the stairs he stopped. Reaching down, he grabbed hold of a tiny metal ring and pulled, revealing the small opening beneath. A ghastly smell met his nose and the man recoiled slightly. _

_"Well, back again," sounded from out of the hole in a deep, weary male voice. _

_The guard reached into his robes and withdrew a flask of water and a bundle of food, which he lowered into the hole. _

_"Can you reach them?" he asked softly. _

_"Yes," said another voice, this one equally weary, though female. "Thank you." _

_Closing the latch again, the guard made his way up the stairs, throwing the lowest dungeon into complete darkness once again. _

_Light did not enter the dungeon again for a fair amount of time, during which Hinata was left with no company but her own. For a long time she sat against the bars, sucking the juice from the orange slices then slowly chewing the flesh. She waited for Shikamaru to return until her eyelids could remain open for no longer and she slumped into an uneasy slumber. _

…

…

…

"And why the hell should I believe anything you're telling me?"

A kunai whizzed within an inch of Temari's ear, rustling her hair. Unhooking her fan, she sent a terrible gush of wind behind her, slowing the pursuing Chaita. Kiba, several steps in front of her, veered sharply to the left. Temari followed, asking herself why she was following this wild chunin she barely knew. A few steps in, Kiba leapt skyward and landed with a small splash on the nearest roof. He traveled back the way they had originally lead the Chaita for several houses before dropping once again to the street below. Temari could hear the Chaita close behind them. Kiba and Temari landed in the middle of a long line of vendor stalls, many of which were empty. Kiba tossed two small, grey balls into the closest pair of stalls before diving into another, dragging the disgruntled sand shinobi with him. A moment later, their Chaita pursuers dropped to the street before them, startling away the few pedestrians braving the rain. Each of the four Chaita leapt to different stalls, two of which promptly erupted in explosions of wood and smoke.

Temari made to flee, but Kiba put a hand to her arm, gesturing her to remain hidden. The pair could hear the Chaita cursing and, an instant later, splashing away to find their prey.

As she crouched in the mud of a shoddy wooden vendor stand, Temari turned a glare to Kiba.

"I ask you once again, why the hell should I believe you? How do I know that you're not the bad guy?"

The boy glared at her with a face smeared in mud that almost obscured the red tattoos decorating both cheeks.

"They're chasing you, aren't they?" he said fiercely. "They're trying to capture you, aren't they?"

"Maybe it's because I'm with you! Maybe _you're_ an outlaw and they were only after _you_! What the hell were you thinking, attacking them and trying to grab me? I barely know your name and you think you can try and stop me from completing my business as emissary from the Sand?"

Her voice remained low, but Kiba sensed her boiling anger.

He grimaced. "I wasn't an outlaw fifteen minutes ago, but because you decided to just waltz on in unannounced during the middle of a _crisis_, there weren't many options. And do you even care who those guys are? They certainly weren't here the last time you were. The only reason they were going after _anyone_ is because they've taken control of the entire village and don't want anyone trying to take it back."

"We haven't had any word from your village speaking of trouble. In fact, we haven't heard from you in over two months; I was sent to see if you'd all been wiped out!"

The boy sneered and, voice dripping sarcasm, said, "Well, how nice of you check in. As you can see, we're just dandy. I mean, who needs to worry about an evil dictator and an army of enemy ninja living in the village, taking control of everything?"

Even as his lips moved, Kiba did not know why he was being so rude to this girl, who was supposed to be his ally. He could not stem the venom flooding his voice.

"Why don't you just go back to your sandbox and tell your beloved brother that everything's absolutely-."

Temari slammed him against the wall, fingers clutching his throat in an iron grip. The wood behind his head began to splinter.

"_Just. Shut. Up_. I don't give a shit about anything you're saying_._ If it weren't for the leaf on your forehead you would not be breathing; I don't know how they let someone with such an untamed tongue become a shinobi. Now, I don't want to hear another word from you, except to tell me where I can find Nara Shikamaru."

Her furious blue eyes locked with Kiba's raging dark ones, and for a long moment nothing moved except the rain falling around them.

Finally Temari loosened her grip, allowing Kiba to speak. All traces of humor vanished from Kiba's face. Weariness fell into sharp relief as well as pain. He snarled in a vicious whisper.

"If you wanted to see Shikamaru then I should have let them capture you, because right now he's probably rotting away in a dungeon. Or, for all we know, he could be _dead_."

Temari rocked back onto her heels, suspicion and shock evident on her face.

"We were trying to save the village from those Chaita bastards, and he was captured. Two days ago. Kokuzoku took over his mind and made it look like he tried to assassinate Lady Tsunade yesterday afternoon."

The young woman closed her eyes. They snapped open again at Kiba's next words.

"And he's not the only one they've taken."

Temari glanced at the boy, sprawled on his back and covered in mud, as he began to lose the battle with his emotions.

"A month ago they set fire to the Hyuuga estates, but blamed some other invader and claimed they were just trying to help. They also took Kurenai, Gai, Kakashi, and Asuma, and Anko and Ibiki and who knows how many others. Most of the high-ranking shinobi were sent away on missions. And now we find out that they've got all our sensei and freaking _Neji Hyuuga_ under their control, but all the other Hyuuga, every freaking one, is _dead_."

Kiba closed his over-bright eyes, his clenched fists shaking. _But Shino doesn't think she's dead. Shino thinks they're lying….but what does Shino know?_

Temari watched as the Inuzuka fought with something within him, while she attempted to straighten her thoughts on this tumult of news.

When his face was still, she spoke quietly.

"You wanted Sand on your side, that's why you stopped me."

Kiba nodded, rubbing his face with his hands.

"And there are some of you trying to overthrow these Chaita. Who's your leader?"

"It was Shikamaru…now it's Shino." Kiba had regained control and was slowly sitting up. "Do you know Shino?"

Temari racked her brains. "Bugs? Yes."

Kiba nodded, shine coming back into his eyes. "Our hideout was blown, so he and the others were heading into the forest." He grimaced. "Most of our group have their faces on wanted posters. Mine'll join them in a few hours."

Temari sighed. Her years of being a shinobi had led her to the conclusion that nothing was ever easy and nothing ever went the way you expected it to. So, a simple informational trip to Leaf had become a battle for liberation from both oppressors and shackles. Fair enough.

Kiba stood, glancing up and down the empty street. He held out a hand to Temari, still crouching in the mud. "Will you come with me? Pl-."

Temari was already on her feet, leaping nimbly into the street.

…

…

…

"Chouji, I think it's too dangerous keeping Maki with us."

Ino, Maki, and Chouji were currently hidden in the rear of Ichiraku's, crouched amongst the many barrels and boxes. The Ramen man, after a joyous reunion and a short explanation, had insisted they hide there as long as they needed.

At Ino's words Chouji dropped somber eyes to the little girl crawling as his feet. He said quietly, "I suppose so….We're lucky nothing's happened to her up until now." He raised anxious eyes to meet Ino's. "But where can we leave her?"

Ino's brow furrowed slightly. "I was thinking my mother's. She's alone since Dad was sent away. Maki will be a good distraction for her, and she'll be safe."

Chouji nodded slowly, thinking. He could see no other option, but…

"But, Ino, if you're a wanted shinobi, wouldn't the Chaita have gone to search your house already? What if they suspected your mother helped you or something?"

Ino bit her lip; she hadn't considered this, and mentally slapped herself for being so stupid. Her mother would be an obvious target for the Chaita since her daughter had revealed her true colors. However, they could trust no one else; anyone could be a Chaita spy. Ino gave a frustrated sigh.

"Let's check it out. Maybe you're right, but maybe not. It won't hurt to look."

…

…

…

Sakura and Sasuke gazed out Sakura's open window down into the street below. A chilly breeze, still carrying a few droplets from that morning's showers, blew gently through, ruffling their hair. Word had reached their ears moments ago of Kiba's vicious attack on the Sand Ambassador and her Chaita escort. The woman who told Sakura this, as she was making the girl's dumplings, had seemed both terrified and thrilled; terrified that the wild young man was on the loose and thrilled that she had such exciting news to share. Now the dumplings sat untouched before the somber pair as they digested instead this fresh piece of news.

"He must have had a reason…" Sakura said slowly, cautiously, as though trying to convince herself of its truth. Sasuke said nothing. His pale fingers tapped lightly on the smooth windowsill.

"I mean," she continued, turning to look at Sasuke, eyes wide, a note of forced optimism in her voice, "He knows the seriousness of the situation. He knows what could happen if he's caught."

Sasuke's dark eyes moved slowly back and forth over the people below; his mouth remained shut.

"He's not stupid!" Sakura burst out, desperation beginning to show itself.

"We don't know what he was thinking, or what the circumstances of his actions were. All we can do is guess."

Sakura frowned. "I hate guessing."

Sasuke's mouth twitched slightly in the opposite direction for just a moment, but it did not stay that way very long. "But we can't be too optimistic. We know Kiba's temper, and we know he's taking her loss…hard."

Sakura felt her stomach ice over. She had tried very hard since the meeting _not_ to think about Hinata. Goosebumps rose up her arms that were not due to the breeze.

_Oh, Hinata…_.._Of everyone to die in this battle, why her?_

They continued their silent watch over the street until, several minutes later, Sakura spoke again. "If the Chaita know Kiba's true colors now, won't they search his house?" She thought of the four fugitives taking shelter in the spacious Inuzuka basement. She turned sharply to her companion. "Do you think the others know?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I don't know. Do we risk going over there?"

Sakura straightened and closed the window with a small thud.

"Yes."

………………………………_.._

Hey, guys. Yeah………..it's been a few months….but……I had many life-changing events and things take place, so I excuse myself a little bit. Hope you all remember what's going on in the story. I know it's hard when the updates are so spaced and everyone has other things going on. That's why I love those continuing readers SO MUCH. And I also love all the new people who keep stumbling upon this story. To all, I promise I'll finish it, because there's still so much I want to happen. It'll get there….eventually!!

Once again, thank you all my amazing readers and reviewers: **ToastWeaselofDOOM, Katako-Chan, The Laughing Phoenix, Chinese-otakufan, Blacktangerine012, cash3055, FujixSaku0709, LilyLovesToSing, No one specific, sad little monkey, Akiko Raikou, Choco-Pocky-Usa-chan, Wandering Wonderer, Tensano Hyguuhi, DanteHyuuga, LixxyChan, Ferousha, M.O.N.S.T.E..POCKY. **

Reading Maid, over and out.


	15. Actions!

I do not own Naruto.

Chapter 14: Actions

Twilight and curfew were approaching as a sweaty Lee and Tenten entered the street upon which rested Kiba's house, and a wave of sickness washed over both like a tidal wave. Chaita guards swarmed the grand building and grounds of the Inuzuka house. They were everywhere, poking and prying at every opening of the pair's former sanctuary. Odd silver glows flashed from all directions, and at the center of all the commotion stood a tall, slender youth with blue silver hair, directing the Chaita ants crawling everywhere.

As one, the leaf pair altered their course, turning right instead of left, away from the enemy.

"How did they find out?" Tenten muttered, barely moving her rapidly numbing lips.

Lee could not answer; his heart was pounding and he feared if he opened his mouth he would either vomit or scream his rage to the heavens. They walked and walked, not speaking, knowing only that they were getting away from the devastating scene behind them. They kept their mouths shut tight until, several minutes later, huddled on two shabby swings in a secluded playground, they opened up.

"The next time I see Kokuzoku will be the last, for I plan on wringing his neck until his is dead for good! I have never before felt such rage at one person in my life!"

The entire play structure was shaking, so intense was Lee's fury, but Tenten did not notice, for her whole body felt numb. She laid her trembling hands on her knees and gazed at them with shining eyes. It seemed as though every way they turned, the world as they knew it was crashing down. Their village, their friends, now their only safehaven…gone. Taken by greedy, evil Chaita. Not only was their sanctuary now in the Chaita's hands, but most likely its inhabitants as well. Images of Hanabi and Naruto in shackles, being dragged before Kokuzoku and Tsunade, filled Tenten's miserable mind. Chaita spit and laughter raining down upon them, instruments of torture still bearing Hinata's blood being brought to them by cackling, no-faced torturers. As the weapon was raised, the torturer's face suddenly clarified, and it was the stern, pale, white-eyed face that haunted Tenten's every hour.

Lee, still caught in his fury, glanced over at Tenten and was startled to see tears dripping from her tightly closed eyes and onto her open palms.

"Tenten!" Lee gasped, his fury dissipating immediately at this display of anguish. "Tenten, please, do not cry!"

Tenten started, her eyes popping open, and felt her face. She was startled by the dampness on her cheeks, and the embarrassment of such a display of weakness only spurred more tears. Lee reached to comfort her, but she threw herself off the swing and marched angrily forward, then stopped abruptly a few feet away. She was so angry, and so crushed, and so hopeless, and felt so useless, she did not think she could bear to live with herself for one more moment.

"I can't stand it, Lee!" She sputtered, barely able to form the words. "I can't stand watching all this happen!"

Lee stood, gazing with anguished eyes at his companion. "I know, Tenten, and neither can I!"

He raised his arms to her, palms extended helplessly. "I feel so useless I could scream. No one wishes to see their home and their friends suffer as we are seeing ours. The Chaita are terrible, terrible, _evil_ people, and I wish I could fight each one myself and teach them the lesson they so need to learn!"

"But wanting them gone isn't enough to make them leave," Tenten spat. "We still haven't figured out how to get them out, and they've been here for almost two months. _Two months_. Neji's been in their dirty clutches for half of that, Hinata's _dead_, and now everyone else could be joining them!" Tenten whipped around, her eyes pouring tears. "And if there's none of us left to fight, then this village really is doomed!"

"Yes," Lee implored to Tenten, "But listen! Something must have happened to make those fowl people go to Kiba's house that we don't know about! We haven't talked to anyone; we don't know anything. What if our friends had notice of their danger and fled? They could still be out here somewhere!" Lee spun on the spot, his arms spread wide. "Think, Tenten, just think." But even as Lee spoke, he could tell his words were doing nothing to console.

Tenten sank to her knees, trembling, tears still pouring down her cheeks. Lee felt his heart breaking; never in all their years of friendship had he ever seen his teammate lose control like this. Feeling that words would do nothing now, he knelt down and wrapped his arms around her. Tenten cried and cried and cried, thick, fast tears, for her friends, her village, and herself.

…

…

…

Tyron stood stock still, watching the scene before him with the same attention and caution as the villagers around him. The small crowd, expanding rapidly, was centered on a woman crouched in the street, sobbing into the shoulder of a Chaita guard. Several feet, away, two more guards were subduing a man, apparently the woman's husband, who was thrashing wildly against his captors. His screams hit the people gathered around like a slap.

"I will kill you, Tsunade, you _bitch_! How could you even think of running this village, you whore! Slut! _Fu_-."

He was abruptly cut off by a rough gag, forced into his mouth by uncaring Chaita hands. The woman was sobbing harder than ever, muttering incoherent words to the guard supporting her. "Calm yourself," the man said in a strong, comforting voice. "You have nothing to fear, lady. Just please, tell me what has happened."

The woman fought to regain control of herself, wiping her nose on her sleeve. Taking a huge gulp of air, she regained control of her voice. "Marko, well, he's seemed a bit unlike himself for the past d-day or two." She hiccupped, continuing in a voice steadily increasing in pitch, "I finally asked him if anything was bothering him, and then he just went berserk! Screaming about wanting to kill Lady Tsunade, and calling her all sorts of names…I told him to s-stop and he h-h-hit me! He's never done that before." The woman began to tremble furiously. "He went to hit me again, but I r-ran! I was so frightened!"

The man, Marko, lay a bound and wriggling worm in the street as the Chaita around him conferred in low voices. The people in the watching crowd muttered also, neighbors of the man discussing this odd behavior. Tyron watched and listened, taking it all in.

Finally, the lead Chaita stepped aside from the group and spoke to the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I ask you now not to panic. I say nothing as an official statement, but I strongly suggest for you all to keep a close eye on your friends and family. If you notice any odd behavior, anything at all, report it. It is possible that we are seeing a resurgence-." He stopped abruptly as one of the other guards placed a hand of caution on his shoulder. They murmured, then the leader spoke again. "That is all. Curfew approaches, please clear the area, and remember! We are here to help!"

The crowd dispersed, still muttering and whispering, Tyron slouching along with them. He needed to find someone from the group; soon. The scene he had just witnessed assured him of one thing: the Chaita were up to something sneaky and immediate action was called for.

…

…

…

At nightfall, stretching cramped muscles and breathing deep breaths, Ino and Chouji set out for the Yamanaka home with the hopes to deliver Maki safely to Ino's mother. The streets were deserted save for Chaita watchmen. It was by far the longest trip from Ichiraku's to Ino's house the pair had ever made. However, after a tense hour of dashes and crouches, they made it. Crouched low on a neighbor's roof, they watched Ino's home. Slowly, the minutes ticked by and neither made a move. At regular intervals, shadowy Chaita strode up and down the otherwise vacant street.

Chouji nibbled his lip, trying to come up with a plan of action.

Beside him, Ino shifted, raising her head dangerously high above their shield.

"_Ino_!" Chouji hissed, putting a hand on her arm and tugging her back down, but she shook him off, her blue eyes focusing in on a retreating Chaita. Her hands came up, and a moment later her limp body slumped backwards, almost falling on top of Maki.

The guard below stiffened; he turned on the spot and marched back towards the Yamanaka's residence. Two short knocks resounded in the silent street. The door creaked open several inches and Chouji could make out the familiar silhouette of Ino's mother. Their exchange reached Chouji's ears as a low rumble. A moment later, Yoshino stepped back, opening the door a bit wider. Chaita Ino turned and beckoned to Chouji, who gathered up Ino and Maki and leapt swiftly to the street below. When the door closed behind him, he let out a small breath. Laying Ino on the couch, he smiled at her mother, taking note of the dark circles and sunken cheeks marring her usually pretty face.

"Hello, Chouji. It's good to see you after so long."

Chouji nodded, giving a tired smile. From the couch, Ino stirred. Sitting up, her eyes flickered open, moving immediately to her mother.

"Oh, Ino," her mother moaned as the two embraced, "I've been so worried about you."

"Have you heard anything from Dad?" Ino asked, her face pressed closely to her mother's shoulder.

"No. But I will take that as good news. He doesn't usually write while on missions." The woman stepped back, gazing at the two teenagers before her. "Let me make some tea."

Seated around the low table, each clutching steaming mugs, Chouji and Ino made their request. "We've been keeping Maki with us because we want to protect her for Asuma, and we didn't know who else we could trust. As you know, anyone could be under Chaita control. But now that the Chaita are actively after us, it's just too dangerous. We figured you were the only person who we could test, and trust."

Ino's mother nodded, hands clasping her tea, gazing intently at Maki as she crawled around floor, the toddler happy for the unusual moments of freedom. For several minutes the older woman did not speak. Ino closed her eyes, relaxing her tense shoulders for the first time in many days in the comfort of her own home. Chouji, however, began to grow uneasy; a tingling started at the base of his neck that he could not ignore. The longer the silence, the more evident his impatience became.

When he could stand it no longer, he burst out, "So, will you take her?"

The woman, whose gaze had not moved from the child, flashed her eyes up to look at the youth and in that instant, Chouji saw the gleam of silver.

"Ino, she's under being controlled!" Chouji leapt to his feet, chakra rushing to his hands in a wave. Ino, caught unaware, blinked at him, uncomprehending. In one fluid motion, her mother was across the table, hands at Ino's throat.

Ino let out a scream as both women toppled backwards and hit the floor with a loud crash. Ino's mother's screeches mixed with Maki's sudden sobs and Ino's curses and dominated the small kitchen as Chouji tried to pry the older woman off his friend. With a grunt, the woman was over his head, struggling wildly. Ino rolled to her feet, her jaw and throat rapidly turning red with her mother's scratches. Aiming at the screeching woman above her, Ino sent forth her mind.

In immediate succession, Ino and her mother went limp. Chouji caught Ino before she hit the floor, laying her mother down at the same time. Tossing Ino over his shoulder and scooping up the bawling Maki in his other arm, Chouji dashed out the back door and into the darkness.

Instead of the usual blackness she encountered in her victim's mind, Ino found herself in a vast, swirling mass of silver. She grasped for mother's consciousness but instead found an unfamiliar male presence. She seized it, but immediately it struggled, fighting her control. Ino tightened her grasp, but felt her fingers begin to slip. Another moment and the man was free. Shocked and frightened, Ino fled, retreating back into the recesses of her own mind.

Chouji felt his companion stir, but did not stop in his swift, silent flight. Maki, chakraed into slumber, hung silent in his grasp. He stopped a minute later in the shadows just before a well-lit street. Ino slipped unsteadily to the ground, grasping his arm for balance. Her face was drawn and the hand on Chouji's arm was shaking; neither spoke. When the coast was clear, they set off again, making their way slowly, cautiously, towards the only safe-haven the desperate fugitives had left: the forest.

…

…

…

When Shino, Naruto, Hanabi, and Akamaru finally arrived at the First Hokage's pond, the canine let out a mournful moan, snuffling the ground all around them desperately. When no scent of Kiba reached his nose, he turned a crestfallen gaze to the three humans, asking them why his master was not there. Hanabi reached out her hand, laying it consolingly on the dog's soft head. Akamaru sniffed it, catching a few small whiffs of his master on Hanabi's person, but when whiffs were all he found, he gave a small whine, retreating to a nearby tree and curling up in its roots.

Naruto strode to the banks of the lake, gazing at the black night sky reflected in its still surface. He let his hands hang limp at his sides. Standing there, a fugitive in his own village, forced to cower in a forest to find safety, his friends scattered, captured, or dead, Naruto felt more hopeless than he thought he ever had.

Without lifting his gaze from the lake, he said dully, "So what do we do now?"

Behind him, Shino and Hanabi exchanged a look. An answer came to neither one.

Silence was not what Naruto wanted, however. He said again, louder, "So what do we do now!?"

Shino turned his gaze to the trees towering above them, breaking their dense coverage only at the very edges of the lake.

Naruto balled his hands into fists and glared up at the night sky. "What the _hell _are we supposed to do now!?"

Hanabi stepped forward and shoved Naruto hard in the small of the back, sending the unsuspecting blond head first into the lake. The glassy surface shattered as ripples radiated out from the place where Naruto entered. Shino's eyebrows shot upward as he watched the panting girl, standing firmly at the lake's shore, glaring down at the murky figure of Naruto below. A few moments later he emerged again, sputtering, water streaming from his nose, hair, and mouth. He glared up at Hanabi, irate, but was silenced by the glower he received in return.

"We think," Hanabi said slowly, deliberately, pale eyes boring into the cerulean ones below her, "And we wait."

…

…

…

Tyron sat perfectly still, hidden in the deepening shadows of a chimney of building located near the middle of the village. His eyes were closed, his breathing slow, his senses spread out through the world below him. Tyron's essence, a light orange in his mind's eye but invisible to others, radiated out from his body, exploring up and down buildings, streets, corners, probing, exploring, searching.

_One of them…just one of them…someone must still be out here…_

Tyron was normally not one to panic, even in the most desperate of situations. Now, though, his nerve was being tested. Desperate to share his hunch with his fellow rebels, Tyron had made his way towards the Inuzuka house. However, upon his arrival, he found the place no longer in his friends' possession. This discovery sent his mind reeling, and he had quickly moved on to a different, safer place. Settling on this rooftop, he began his search, trying to locate his friends, wherever in the village they may be.

_If only I could see into the Tower_, he mused silently. _Then I would at least know if they'd been captured. _

He had been searching for almost an hour, and with no sign of even one of his rebel comrades, a small seedling of panic was beginning to sprout inside him. What was he supposed to do if everyone had been captured? Could he even attempt to continue efforts to free the village by himself? He, Tyron, alone against the entire Chaita army?

The thought sent shivers up his spine and pushed him to extend his senses even further. And suddenly, he found something, but it was not what he was expecting at all.

Tyron's eyes snapped open, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up on end.

_What are they doing here? _

Closing his eyes again, Tyron focused all his senses on the two beings now making their way slowly, warily, along the fringe of trees bordering the back of the Academy. For a moment he basked in the familiarity and comfort their presences gave him, but quickly turned back to business. He followed their progress, noting that they kept well hidden from Chaita guards, but also from any places where civilians could see them from doors or windows. Tyron tried to make sense of this, but before a conclusion could be made, realized with a start that their course had altered and the pair was now making a beeline straight for him. They were about half a mile away, continuing their cautious methods, but definitely increasing their speed.

Tyron stood, bracing himself both physically and mentally. He did not know what to expect, and he had to keep a clear head.

A moment later, they were crouched in the shadows before him. Coru and Voorn. Coru, short, stout, blond; Voorn, thin, tan, serious. His teammates, sent away by Kokuzoku five weeks prior on a mission to the remote mountains of Earth country. What were they doing here?

The three took a tense moment to stare, then Voorn slowly stood and stepped back into a shaft of moonlight. The brown eyes gazing down at Tyron were clear of any silver. Coru rose as Voorn crouched once more, and her eyes reflected the gleam of the moon and nothing else. Tyron felt a knot in his chest loosen and a smile spread his freckled face. Instantly he found a kunai inches from his nose. Voorn, staring intensely at Tyron, motioned for him to stand. Tyron jumped to do so, and gazed down at his team with his clear, dark blue eyes.

In an instant Coru had him in a tight hug, which he returned just as enthusiastically. Looking over Coru's head Tyron smiled broadly at Voorn.

"What are you guys doing here?"

Voorn put on a grim smile. "If you've got a second, we can tell you."

…

…

…

The Supervisor of the Chaita dungeons looked up from the stack of paperwork on his desk and hollered, "Bunta! Get your ass in here!"

The door to the small office popped open and a young guard stepped in, bowing low.

"I can't read this chicken scratch," the supervisor grumbled, squinting down at a grimy piece of paper. "But we got rid of that Hyuuga girl, right?"

The young guard stared at his feet, and nodded slowly. "Yes, sir. Yesterday."

"So that cell is empty?"

"No, sir. Shikamaru Nara is being held there."

The supervisor slammed his hands down on the desk. "What!? Since when!?" He got to his feet and began to pace the short length of his office. "If we're gonna be arresting as many people as Lord Kokuzoku says we are, we're going to need every cell in this damn tower! Why the hell is that kid still alive!?"

Bunta glanced upward. "I believe my lord has more plans for him, sir."

The supervisor, still grumbling, resumed his seat and angrily shuffled his papers. "We can always just stick a few more in the Hole, I suppose…" He glanced at Bunta. "Dismissed!"

Bunta bowed again and backed out, closing the door with a snap. Once alone in the dim hall, he rested his sweaty forehead on the cool stone wall. Any mention his superiors made of the Hole and the lower dungeons, his primary responsibility, his heart beat just a little faster and a line of sweat broke out across his brow. Taking a few breaths to calm himself, Bunta went to the leftovers barrels and picked the least moldy food specimens he could find. Filling a small cup and a jug with water, he began the long hike down into the lowest dungeons.

Bunta's silver eyes flickered to either side as he descended through the layers of dungeon, catching glimpses of the empty cells lining the walls. The tower was, for the most part, devoid of prisoners. News had trickled down to his ears, however, of Lord Kokuzoku's plans. In order to ensure that the citizens of Konoha remained loyal to the Chaita, there was going to be a come back of the "invaders" who destroyed the Hyuuga. They would appear slowly at first, just a few people here or there; the citizens would become frightened and turn to those who pushed out the invaders before. The Chaita would make a few arrests, allow some fright, then a few days later release those who were arrested and their families would find them back to normal. It was a way of keeping the Chaita necessary, for, as Tsunade will say, the trick of defeating these invaders lies with the Chaita.

_So these cells will soon be filled with innocent villagers, guilty only of falling victim to the halsegan. _The thought settled a melancholy feeling in Bunta's chest.

Finally reaching the last flight of stairs, Bunta took a torch from the wall and carefully descended into the blackness of the lowest dungeons. When his feet hit the cool, dirt floor, Bunta turned toward the only cell down there. The light of his torch illuminated the figure seated against the bars and shone in the dark eyes gazing directly at him from the dirty face.

When Bunta made to step toward the cell, Shikamaru spoke.

"Open the hole first."

Bunta stopped, hesitated, then set the food and water on the steps, inserting the torch into a wall bracket. Taking hold of the small metal ring, the young man tugged. As the hatch lifted a nauseating reek wafted upward. Bunta had to stop himself from outwardly gagging.

"Hinata," Shikamaru said urgently, leaning forward and grasping the bars tightly.

A head of filthy, matted blue hair slowly appeared in the opening and turned towards Shikamaru. Hinata shielded her eyes from the brightness of the torch, the shadowy light accentuating the skeletal quality of her face and arms. Shikamaru's face set, although inwardly he ached.

He turned to Bunta and said sharply, "Quickly, give them the food."

Bunta, choosing not to react to the harshness in Shikamaru's voice, reached a hand down and practically hoisted Hinata out of the hole. He helped her to sit on the steps, then handed her some of the food he had procured. As he did so, another skeletal figure climbed slowly out of the hole, followed by a third. Shikamaru winced again, outwardly this time, at seeing the pathetic, ravished creatures Anko and Ibiki had become. Filthy skeletons, wearing ragged, almost unrecognizable versions of their clothes. They wolfed down the food Bunta handed them and all too soon it was gone.

Hinata reached up and touched the Chaita's hand, expressing her gratitude. Bunta hesitated, then grasped her small hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze.

The silent, emaciated Anko crawled to the other side of the stairs, where a small chamber pot sat, brought by Bunta several weeks prior, after it was realized Ibiki and Anko would die from their own waste if they were not provided a different location. Bunta avoided looking at the prisoners he was keeping alive, each and every day risking his neck to feed. It was too painful. He could not remember what the three prisoners had looked like when they were brought in, alive, healthy, and well fed; all he saw were the pathetic, nearly starved specters they had become.

In the silence of the dungeon, boot steps from several floors below, making their way downard, were clearly heard.

Bunta's stomach turned to ice.

"Back in the hole," he hissed urgently, bending down and lifting Hinata from the stairs. "Someone's coming-." Ibiki slid down first, panting from the effort of moving so quickly. Bunta placed the skeletal girl he held in feet first, the boot steps getting louder. He raced to get Anko, who was trying to crawl back.

Shikamaru, his heart racing, stared at Hinata. "Hinata," he called quietly. "Hang in there, okay? Don't give in yet; the others haven't given up on you! You have to be alive when they come for you, understand?"

She gave a weak nod. "I'll try," she said, her voice harsh and barely more than a whisper. Bunta , carrying Anko, quickly placed her in the hole, then lowered the lid back into place with a low thud, sealing the prisoners into darkness once more. Bunta positioned himself in front of the hole, blocking it from the view of the stairs, and a moment later, a light appeared.

"Bunta, are you down there?"

The young Chaita turned and gazed upward. "Yes, sir."

Shikamaru, still staring at the hole, saw, with a twinge of horror, that the hatch had not closed completely; the tip of a finger protruded up from the ground.

The new arrival did not descend the stairs, but called down to Bunta instead. "Lord Kokuzoku needs the kid, ASAP." He tossed down a pair of manacles, which Bunta clumsily caught. "Bring him up."

Bunta hesitated, then slowly walked to Shikamaru's cell, fumbling at his belt for the key. Shaking hands tried to insert the key into the lock, but failed multiple times.

As Bunta struggled, Shikamaru felt his stomach ice over. If he was no longer in the dungeon, this guard would have no reason to go down there. He would have no excuse to bring food down to the dungeon. He could not keep Hinata, Ibiki, and Anko alive.

The door finally clicked and swung open. Fastening manacles proved as difficult a task for the shaking Bunta as the door. His reaction moved Shikamaru, but the boy could do nothing. When Bunta finished, both young men rose, Bunta awkwardly guiding Shikamaru out of the cell. Shikamaru was careful not to look in the direction of the Hole. It was with a sinking feeling in his heart that Shikamaru climbed the stairs, Bunta close behind him. When they reached the landing and the other guard turned to lead them upwards, he cast a quick glance backwards at the pitch blackness now filling the lower dungeon. Bunta nudged him gently in the small of the back; he turned around, and as they ascended the many flights of stairs, Shikamaru prayed with all his heart that the time would come when he would see Hinata, Anko, and Ibiki again.

…

…

…

"…Iruka found us about a week out. He brought us to Waterfall, and over the past few weeks nearly every shinobi sent out by Kokuzoku has been found and brought there. Somehow Iruka and a few others had managed to contact everyone and get them to meet there. They are planning an invasion of the Village, with the aid of Waterfall, to try and get rid of Kokuzoku."

Tyron whistled softly. "Wow…"

Coru continued, "They were still working out the details of the invasion when we left. We were supposed to assess the situation and see if there were any shinobi left who would fight with us, and if not, how many would fight for Kokuzoku." She turned to look at Tyron. "So tell us your story."

Tyron sighed and gave her a strained, tired smile. "It's long, and you're not gonna like it."

Voorn gazed skyward and said, "Could you give us the highlights?"

Tyron, shaking his head slowly, cleared his throat and held up a finger. "Okay, just the big things. One, the Hyuuga family has been completely destroyed save for Hanabi, who's a fugitive, and Neji, who is currently Kokuzoku's puppet. Kokuzoku also has control over Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi, Gai, and Shikamaru, as well as some officials working in the Tower. Aside from them, the only shinobi still in the village are myself, Team Kakashi, Ino, Chouji, Shino, Kiba, Lee, and Tenten. The citizens are all under the impression that the Chaita are heroes who saved them from an invader who takes over people's minds and destroyed the Hyuuga. A number of us have been trying to cause trouble for the Chaita, but that hasn't been going so well since Shikamaru was captured, and now Naruto, Ino, and Chouji are all being sought by the Chaita. Up until now, we've been using Kiba's house as a headquarters; however, I was there this afternoon and it was swarming with Chaita, so quite possibly they have all been captured. I've been searching, but can't find anyone."

He paused.

"That's all I have."

Coru blinked, then rubbed her face and looked away. Voorn leaned his head back against the chimney. "Shit…"

"Yeah…," Tyron agreed. "Basically." He paused to consider his next words. "If it turns out that everyone was captured, that means there's no one left to fight here. Do you think I should go back with you?"

Voorn looked thoughtful. "I don't know….that would mean we wouldn't have a source for information, but then again, I think Iruka meant to attack soon anyway…." His voice trailed off, his mind pondering.

As the silence lengthened, Tyron gathered his senses and sent them out, hoping that maybe someone would have moved into his range.

Four blocks away he felt Sakura and Sasuke.

"Finally!" He whispered excitedly, jumping up. Voorn and Coru looked up, startled by his movement.

"What?" Coru asked, looking at him curiously.

"Sakura and Sasuke are right over there!"

Knowing the way was clear of Chaita, Tyron leapt silently off, his teammates following close behind. Several seconds later, he jumped down to the street, several feet from his friends.

The pair was standing, braced, kunai drawn, waiting for him. Tyron held up his hands and moved into the light, letting his eyes shine at them. Coru and Voorn, landing gently behind him, also showed clear eyes. Sakura and Sasuke, looking slightly more relaxed, moved forward, but Voorn stepped forward.

"Show us your eyes," he said softly. Sasuke and Sakura stopped, a little surprised, then also gazed into the light. Tyron smiled and relaxed.

"Have you seen the others?" Sakura asked immediately, not relaxing in the slightest. "You saw Kiba's house, right?"

The group moved into deeper shadows. Tyron nodded. "I've been looking for them, but I haven't found anyone."

Sakura cursed and turned away, her face torn. Tyron glanced at Sasuke. "I saw something strange this afternoon, though, that I think is important." He described the scene he had witnessed in the street to Sasuke briefly. "…and then the Chaita warned the crowd to watch their friends and neighbors, because there could be a 'resurgence' of something."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "The 'invaders', perhaps?"

Tyron nodded. "That's what I was thinking. But I don't know what to make of it, other than that."

Sasuke looked away, brows knitted.

"Anyway," Tyron continued, gesturing back towards his teammates. "Voorn and Coru just brought more news."

Voorn stepped forward and quickly summarized his story for Sakura and Sasuke.

"They need to go back and report to Iruka before the invasion can begin. I'm going to go with them."

Sakura, attentive during Voorn's story, had gone back to fretting and did not appear to be listening. Sasuke, looking into the distance, shrugged.

The redhead, slightly irritated by the lack of reaction, gazed intently at the pair before him. "Well then. Be careful, we'll be back soon."

Turning back to his teammates, who nodded their farewells, the three took off. They had several hours left of darkness to make their escape.

Sakura gazed after them, nervously tapping her fingers against her thigh. "I'm so happy about Iruka and the others," she said quietly. "It's such a shock!" She looked at Sasuke quickly. "So really, all we need to do now is hold out another week. A _week_. If we can keep Kokuzoku from doing any real damage between now and the invasion, then everything should be alright."

The words stumbled awkwardly from her mouth, as though she barely believed them. However…

After another hour of searching for their missing companions, the pair decided to turn in. Sakura fell asleep to a faint glimmer of hope simmering gently in her stomach. She hardly dared to believe Voorn's words, and yet could not contain her elation. A smile was on her lips when Sasuke awoke her the next morning.

"Look at this," he said shortly, gently shaking her shoulder.

Sakura sat up from her mattress, her nerves alerted by Sasuke's tone. She glanced down and saw, clutched in his hand, a poster. She took it, read it, and felt the floor beneath her melt away as the breath was knocked from her chest. All happiness from the night before evaporated in an instant to be replaced with an overwhelming sense of dread that spread from her toes to her brow.

Her hand began to shake; the poster slipped from her grasp and floated gently to the floor. Shikamaru's picture stared up at them. The words below it read:

SHIKAMARU NARA, IN CUSTODY FOR

HIGH TREASON AND

ATTEMPTED MURDER,

UNDER THE ORDERS OF THE HONORABLE

GODAIME HOKAGE TSUNADE,

WILL BE FORMALLY EXECUTED

TOMORROW AT NOON

…………………………………….

Hello, all! STUFF HAPPENED!! Woohoo!!! And this update only took ONE month and ONE day. Boo-yah. :D And if anyone's confused by anything, just ask.

I'm more grateful than ever to those of you who have continued to read this story as it goes into its second year of being published. So you are all absolutely the best.

**Enormous thank-yous and edible bouquets for: siny, the Elven-Spear, Katako-Chan, The Laughing Phoenix, Wandering Wonderer, No one specific, M.O.N.S.T.E..POCKY., LittleKittyShaoMao, Choco-Pocky-Usa-chan, and Akiko Raikou**

Till next time! Reading Maid, over and out.


	16. Long Awaited Blood

Naruto's not mine.

Chapter 15: Long-Awaited Blood

Akamaru lifted his nose, sniffing the cool night air. A light breeze rustled the thousands of leaves of the forest's roof. The three shinobi around the canine stirred.

"What is it, Akamaru?" Hanabi asked, pushing herself into a sitting position and brushing leaves from her knees. The dog rose and moved into the moonlight, leaving his companions huddled in the shadows of the trees. He sniffed again, then turned in the direction of the village. He _whuff_ed slightly.

Naruto cocked his ear in the same direction, listening. Shino straightened; normally, Akamaru's lack of concern for the visitors would be enough to soothe Shino; however, he did not know if the dog would pick up the Chaita's mental presence.

Several moments later, two figures emerged from the shadows.

"Ino, Chouji," Naruto called softly, rising to his feet. "You made it."

As the two, Chouji cradling Maki to one shoulder, approached, Shino watched their eyes, but saw no telltale gleam of silver. He did note faint tear tracks on Ino's cheeks.

"Did you have any trouble?" Shino asked, his gaze bouncing between the two newcomers.

Chouji nodded slowly, but Ino spoke, softly. "I thought we could try to give Maki over to my mother, to keep her safe. But she was being controlled, and we didn't realize…so Maki stays with us."

Silence fell as the small, somber group retreated back into the shadows, huddling at the base of the great trees. Maki snuggled close to Akamaru, thumb in her mouth, gazing at the forest and people around her. Older eyes wandered between faces and spaces, and no thoughts were voiced. Hanabi watched the four fractured shinobi around her. These people, her sister's year-mates, had been a part of her life for years; not necessarily her friends, but a presence. But there was usually a Shikamaru between thin, blond Ino and robust Chouji; the exuberant gold should be framed by blue and pink. Broken teams were unnatural.

She turned to Shino. The breeze toyed gently with the lip of Shino's hood, sharing with the girl glimpses of the dark hair framing his brow. His glasses were black holes in a pale face, pointed off into the shadows. His team was not broken; it was shattered.

"Let Akamaru find Kiba and bring him here."

The refugees started, their silent reverie broken. Shino turned to look at Hanabi, whose pale eyes shone intently in the shadows.

"Sakura and Sasuke too, if he can," she added, turning to Naruto, who met her gaze with tender cerulean eyes. "This waiting is ridiculous; we can't do anything when we're all split up."

The black holes bore into Hanabi's pale face as he slowly smoothed his thin lips.

"Lee and Tenten are still out there as well…" Ino added, directing a steady gaze at the Hyuuga.

Brow set, Hanabi crawled to crouch before Akamaru, stroking his ears gently. "Akamaru," she whispered tenderly, "Go find Kiba and bring him here. Tell him we need him. But," she added lightly grasping his nose, "Don't get caught."

The dog let out a small _whuff_, gently disengaging himself from the toddler curled at his middle. Ino pulled the child into her lap, softly stroking her dark hair as Akamaru gave Hanabi a swift lick. Turning, he bounded silently into the forest, his pale tail raised high like a banner in the darkness.

…

…

…

The first rays of sunlight entering Tenten's window landed gently on the young woman's face, softening the dark circles framing each eye. She stirred, face scrunching, reluctant to be brought out of the safety of unconsciousness. The light persisted, however, and slowly Tenten pushed herself up and out of bed. Chestnut locks a tousled mess around her shoulders, she gazed down at her bare feet with a sleepy gaze. Flexing first one foot, then the other, she felt her sleep-loosened muscles begin to tense and the knot at the center of her chest constricted; the usual symptoms indicating that one lived in a village ruled by Chaita and most of one's friends and loved ones were missing, imprisoned, or dead.

In the small living room of her apartment, Tenten found Lee's couch vacant, his blankets folded, and Lee himself performing vigorous push-ups beside it.

"Morning," she said as the young man grunted numbers somewhere in the three hundreds.

"Morning!" He said shortly, between breaths. Tenten retreated to her room to dress and when she emerged again, Lee was eating a piece of toast; another was waiting on a plate for her. She sat at her small table and took a bite. As the bread was slowly consumed, Lee tapped a foot anxiously while Tenten leaned into her elbows.

"Well…where shall we go for practice today, Tenten?"

The girl shrugged, taking another bite, not looking at her companion. This was a discussion they had every morning, and the resolutions grew more painful as time passed. "I don't know," she mumbled, not really thinking about it.

When she did not continue, Lee frowned. "Come, Tenten, Neji would not want us to slack off just because of the Chaita. We must always be prepared!"

Tenten sighed, but pushed herself to her feet anyway. "Let's try the forest."

Lee leapt to his feet, grabbed both dishes, and washed them in five seconds, then led the way out the door.

…

…

…

"If I were Shino, where would be my last resort? Where would I go to hide?" Sakura tried to put herself in the bug-ninja's mind, but found her distress and her general unfamiliarness with the young man prevented her from getting anywhere.

"It's not so much Shino we need to understand and where he would go," Sasuke said slowly. "It's more a question of where _could_ they go; what safe places are left? And it seems to me," he continued, pulling the still intensely thinking Sakura clear of an approaching cabbage cart.

As the pair walked casually through Konoha's emptier-than-usual streets, Shikamaru's face caught their eyes at every turn. The Chaita, it seemed, wanted no one to miss this display of their power and the example they would make of such a disobedient shinobi.

"We have twenty-nine hours until he's killed," Sakura murmured, subduing a shiver that threatened to travel her spine.

Sasuke nodded, but neither spoke as they continued to wander.

…

…

…

Lord Kokuzoku leaned forward in his chair, staring eagerly at the shinobi before him. The man, in his mid thirties with short-cropped black hair, stood before his master's desk, palms folded and eyes closed in concentration.

"There are five of them," the soldier said, slowly. "They're gathered in the shadows of an enormous tree. It looks like they are in the forest, at the edge of a large pond. One is awake, keeping watch, but the others are asleep."

"Very good," Kokuzoku mused, causing the soldier's eyes to open and his hands to relax. "Do you recognize the location?"

"Not exactly, my lord, but judging by the size of the water, I believe it to be the First Hokage's Pond."

"Very good," the old man repeated, one corner of his mouth curving upward. He leaned back in his chair and turned from the soldier, mind working. "Do you recognize the other three?"

The soldier paused thoughtfully. "Two had dark hair, but I could not see their faces. But, the other one, I believe, is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Excellent. I want you to gather as many shinobi as you think you'll need to take down this little group of rebels. Do not kill them, merely subdue them and bring them to me. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"And…do not reveal your control over the child. You never know when leverage such as that can be useful."

…

…

…

Naruto's anxiety and displeasure at the rebels' lack of action was spreading to the other refugees. Chouji paced between the trees, clenching and unclenching his meaty fists. Hanabi ruthlessly kicked the jagged stump of a tree, not uttering a sound but letting her piercing eyes do the talking. Shino and Ino exchanged mechanical blows, both lost in thoughts far from the movement of their limbs. Naruto paced, climbed trees, fought with Hanabi and Chouji, twiddled his thumbs, and finally pulled off his shirt and pants and dove into the pond. The sun was nearing its peak when he dragged himself back to shore and rejoined the group.

Hanabi hissed as droplets shaken from Naruto's hair landed on her, but Naruto did not apologize; he did not even notice her displeasure.

"What's taking Akamaru so long?" Ino moaned after several moments of tense silence, holding her face in her palms.

In the silent response to her answer, Naruto's ears caught a faint rustling. He jumped to his feet as a dozen kunai whistled down from the trees. The Konohians scattered, one knife grazing Ino's arm as she pulled Maki away with her. Back-to-back with his friends, Shino cursed as ten Chaita burst from the trees.

"Remember," he hissed, "Don't look in their eyes."

"Finally," Naruto shouted, hair bristling and pupils shrinking to pinpricks. "Bring it on, you evil bastards!"

The Chaita brought it in a deadly, silver-clad arrow. With an animalistic snarl, Naruto leapt at the forerunner. Chaos ensued as the two groups converged and then split as each shinobi found their enemy. Ino kept one arm tightly around Maki as she tried to battle two Chaita. Chouji was at her back, fighting two, but trying to help his teammate as well. His enormous fist made to knock his enemies away, but they darted out of harm's way and dashed for him while his balance was off; his leg caught them by surprise.

Being face to face with Hinata's killers fired up a rage in Shino the likes of which he had never felt. Bugs tore from his coat like bullets and his attackers sunk to the ground with screams of agony. He turned to his companions, each caught in his or her own battle, and unleashed his fury.

Until that moment, no drop of Chaita blood had been spilled. Naruto, Shino, and Hanabi ended that with pleasure. Ino's initial panic at trying to fight and protect Maki subsided almost immediately when she witnessed the intensity with which Hinata's avengers fought.

In a matter of moments, it appeared that the rebels had the Chaita beat. However, as they stood, panting, Shino's insects devouring several unconscious Chaita, a fresh wave of nearly twenty Chaita shinobi burst forward from the brush. Ino and Chouji braced themselves as Hanabi and Naruto charged forward to meet them.

The ground beneath the approaching Chaita groaned; it rose and fell as though a giant wave passed beneath it. Several chargers stumbled, taken by surprise, and in that moment of weakness fell victim to the shining silver blur that flew toward them; more than one appendage fell to the ground amid screams of horror and pain. Naruto and Hanabi collided with the remaining attackers; turning their attention to the source of the silver blur, Ino, Chouji, and Shino saw Sakura and Sasuke hurrying towards them, the Ghost Shuriken returning with a flash to Sasuke's outstretched hand.

"Sakura!" Ino had no time to spend greeting her friend as several Chaita who had made it past Naruto and Hanabi leapt on them. Sakura raced to their aid as Sasuke's eyes rested on Naruto, who found himself engaged with someone more than the average Chaita grunt. Sasuke identified the tall young man as Kokuzoku's grandson. He did not worry about his friend, however, and pushed forward to engage in his own battle.

This wave of Chaita proved to be on a different level than the forerunners; minutes passed and neither side showed any sign of weakness. It was still seven versus twenty when a green blur came out of nowhere, crashing into one of the shinobi battling with Hanabi. The man was knocked to the ground, completely stunned and winded; Lee sprung from him just as a fatal line of kunai found their bloody home in his chest.

"Beware, Chaita scum! Your greedy intentions cannot overcome the drive of friendship!"

Hanabi's grimace was the closest her lips had come to a smile in weeks. "Lee, where the hell have you been?"

There was no time to respond, however, as battles do not stop for witty banter or pleasant exchanges. Tenten and Lee effortlessly slid into the battle, alleviating the press of unequal numbers on their friends. The addition of Lee and Tenten was enough to slowly begin to turn the tide. Three Chaita now lay, moaning or silent, on the battlefield as the rebels' desire for revenge continued to spur them on. The most noise came from Naruto and Denkou, both of whom favored a more vocal combative style. Their yells and curses were momentarily drowned out, however, when a mighty wind ripped across the battlefield. On its waves was carried a thundering howl; a white shape leapt from the trees and landed with a vicious snarl on Sakura's opponent. Two Chaita glanced at the enormous dog in surprise, not expecting the young man and woman on its back. With a howl of his own, Kiba leapt from Akamaru and tore at the ogling Chaita.

The arrival of Temari, Kiba, and Akamaru was enough to clinch the battle. In just a few minutes, the only Chaita left standing was Denkou. With a yell he broke away from Naruto's attacks and crouched several yards away, panting, eyes darting from rebellious face to rebellious face. The Konohians fanned out in a wide circle around the pair.

Denkou grimaced, but did not back down. Hanabi almost expected him to start talking, trying to demoralize the rebels by magnifying the Chaita's advantages, maybe make some vulgar remarks…but Denkou said nothing. His attention was focused solely on Naruto.

Hearts pounded as the two young men faced each other, muscles tense, waiting for the first move to be made.

With a blood-curdling roar, Naruto leapt forward; Denkou springing toward him not an instant after. It became a battle of physical strength alone as the pair locked together, trying to gain the dominant position. Denkou, taller than Naruto, had the advantage and for a moment the battle seemed to lean in his favor. However, Naruto pushed back with a mighty yell and, showing strength Denkou did not know the young man possessed, knocked the Chaita to the ground, pinning him tightly. Keeping his eyes fixed on Denkou's cheekbones, Naruto lowered his face until he hovered mere inches from Denkou. For a moment, Naruto's heavy breathing was all that could be heard. Denkou wrinkled his nose as the rebel's breath filled his nose.

"Where's Hinata Hyuuga, you bastard?"

A menacing growl rattled from deep in Kiba's throat.

Denkou tried to turn his head away, mouth a tense line.

The incensed shinobi seized handfuls of Denkou's shirt, shaking its wearer fiercely.

"DID YOU KILL HER!?"

The air around them echoed with the cry, but no response came. Naruto's breath grew more ragged; one hand clenched around Denkou's throat, the other reaching for a kunai.

"Do we kill him, Naruto," Sasuke asked levelly, staring with unreadable onyx eyes at his friend, "Or use him against Kokuzoku?"

"What do you mean!?" Kiba snarled, whipping around to face Sasuke. "Of course we kill him!!"

No one replied; Kiba turned to Shino and Hanabi, looking for support, but the pair was silent. Denkou was struggling beneath Naruto's hand, sputtering for breath. A growl returned to Kiba as he stared menacingly at Naruto. For nearly a minute Naruto sat atop his enemy, easing his grip on Denkou's throat to give himself more time. Hanabi could almost hear the cogs of his mind working rapidly. Finally, he raised the kunai and the group held its breath. With a hiss, he threw the blade to the ground. Seizing the moment Denkou renewed his struggles, but Sakura rushed forward. Beneath her hands he crumpled, seeping into unconsciousness as her chakra spread through him.

The breath that everyone had been holding was released. Denkou was bound and gagged and placed in the open under the watchful, menacing eye of Akamaru. The bodies of the other Chaita were piled and quickly set ablaze by Sasuke. Within moments they were no more than a pile of ash. Greetings that could not be made during the battle were had. Formal introductions were made between Hanabi and Temari, who had been aware of the other's existence but had never met. It was immediately decided they had to move, now that their position had been discovered. Chouji hoisted the unconscious Denkou over his back and the group set off, quickly zigzagging through the trees until they settled in a densely shaded clearing half a mile from their previous position.

After wounds were treated and some food was doled out, they settled into a large circle. Ino finally voiced the question.

"How did the Chaita find us?"

"They must have followed some of you when you left Kiba's house," Temari declared promptly.

Shino frowned. "That's always a possibility, but I am certain we were not followed;" he gestured to Hanabi and Naruto, who agreed.

"We did fight with a Chaita," Ino confessed with a small sigh. "They knew we were on the move." Chouji nodded with downcast eyes.

"But you could have hidden anywhere," Kiba protested. "Just knowing you were moving isn't enough; how did they know you were moving _here_?"

Hanabi turned a sharp gaze to Sasuke, Sakura, Lee, and Tenten. "How did you all know we were here?"

"We saw that force of Chaita set out from the Tower. With a group that big, and with Denkou leading it, we reasoned that it couldn't be good and that it probably had something to do with you all, so we followed."

Deeming Sakura's response acceptable, Hanabi turned her accusing gaze to Lee and Tenten.

"We were sparring not too far from here," Tenten gestured.

"The sounds of battle beckoned us, and imagine our happiness at discovering it was our missing friends!"

Naruto did not seem as concerned with this question; jamming a fist into his palm, he asserted, "So now that we're all here, let's do something! I'm sick and tired of just running and hiding from the Chaita. Something needs to be done, and now!"

He looked at the weary faces around him, some scarred by mourning, others burning with determination. For years they had been his companions. Not always friends, but companions. Konoha shinobi. Now, they were brought together out of desperation, and the time for action had come.

Sakura cleared her throat. "Sasuke and I ran into Tyron last night, who gave us some news. His teammates had returned to the village and reported to him that Iruka-sensei has been gathering the Konoha shinobi at Waterfall Village to organize a counter-attack against the Chaita; they plan on attacking next week."

This statement was followed by stunned silence. Sakura watched the faces around her process this information, which could so easily lead to a happy ending for their battle.

"That's amazing," Ino breathed, eyes beginning to glint with something that resembled hope.

Lee jumped to his feet, startling Hanabi and Temari. Raising his fists to the heavens, he shouted, "I _knew_ our sensei would not let their village down! Hope has returned at last! A victory is finally in sight!"

Naruto stared at Sakura, disbelief still on his face. Shino felt that this was simply too good to be true. And, of course, he was right.

"Yes, that is great. So really, we could just continue to hide until Iruka leads the attack. However," Sasuke said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a folded piece of paper. "This changes things." In the middle of the circle, Sasuke placed Shikamaru's execution announcement; the misunderstood genius stared up at them all through his dark, level eyes.

A stunned silence of a different kind fell upon the group. Chouji, perched on his heels, fell back with a thump, staring back at the poster with shocked disbelief. Many people simply blinked, their brains not ready to process such information. Naruto snatched the poster up, holding it before his face with shaking hands and reading it again, disbelief on his face. Hanabi put her face in her hands. Kiba cursed loudly, standing up and looking around for something to kick.

"Leave it to that bastard to shatter any kind of hope that grows in this place," Tenten spat, glaring daggers at the spot where the poster had been.

Temari closed her eyes, clenching her shaking hands. Taking a moment to gather herself, her eyes snapped open and she glared around at the younger shinobi around her. "Alright then. That bastard's forcing our hand. Let's not panic like a bunch of genin, and actually think about this!"

Those not reeling from the production of the poster turned to Temari. With an enormous yell, Kiba launched a rock the size of his head into the water. Temari gave him a withering glare as he marched back to the group, but that display of frustration seemed to have calmed him for the moment. His eyes blazed; this action by Kokuzoku was the last straw. Kiba had, in fact, lost his only straw when he had been accosted for letting Akamaru run wild in the first weeks of the Chaita's reign. There was no more calming of his rage, however. As Naruto had said before, now was the time for action.

"We can't wait for Iruka. We have to strike the Chaita now."

"He's probably baiting us," Tenten said, rising to her feet and twirling a weapon anxiously on one finger. "We're the only thing creating bumps in his wonderful society. He's hoping Shikamaru will draw us all out so he can get rid of us once and for all."

"Which simply affirms his status as a crazy bastard, because we will _not _be charging him blindly out of rage," Temari declared firmly.

"Oh, there will be rage," Hanabi snarled. "But we won't be blind."

"Very well!" Lee yelled, fists in the air once again. "Then let us plan!"

As Temari and Kiba shouted above him, Naruto tried to gather his mind and beat down the panic that had grown in him after seeing the poster.

_You're not gonna die, Shikamaru. We won't let you._

Inner-Ino had been having a furious debate, trying to decide which path of emotions to take: heart-broken puddle or furious, provoked lover. She settled on the latter. Jumping to her feet and taking several steps away from the circle, she raised her fist to the heavens and roared with every ounce of volume she could conjure, "NICE TRY YOU CRAZY BASTARD! BUT YOU WON'T FOOL US! SHIKAMARU IS OURS AND YOU'LL BE A COLD, ROTTING CORPSE LONG BEFORE _HE_ DIES! ENJOY YOUR LAST HOURS BECAUSE YOUR HEAD IS OURS!"

_You may have taken Hinata from Naruto, Kokuzoku, but you're not taking Shikamaru from me._

To be continued…

* * *

YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT.

Take that, Kokuzoku!

Hello, wonderful readers! Thank you for sticking around for another action-packed chapter! We're getting down to the end here, and it's gonna get messy. Reeeeeal messy. But this is what the whole story has been working up to, so I'm gonna try my very hardest to make it worth the wait and the patience I've asked of you readers. You deserve this story to go out with a BANG.

**Thank you to all those who reviewed last chapter! You help me to keep on writing, no matter how slowly! MuSiC HaTs, The Laughing Phoenix, emoDeidara13, BleachFan24, siny, M.O.N.S.T.E..POCKY., Tsebe Uchiha, Wandering Wonderer, Windesque, No one specific, sarahlilly95, and Arrowachi. **

This story will get done, I promise! Non-stop (almost) action from now on! Until next time!

The Reading Maid, over and out.


	17. No More Hiding

I do not own Naruto…

Chapter 16: No More Hiding

Level dark eyes stared dully at the clock hanging opposite him; although they followed the progress of the steadily ticking second hand, it was apparent he was not really seeing the clock at all. His mind was busily engaged in the careful crafting of a plan.

One would not expect much brain activity to be coming from a boy in his state. He still had the healthy looks of an active shinobi, but three nearly sleepless nights with little food had left immense shadows of purple beneath his eyes, and every inch of his body screamed weariness. His clothes and skin bore the slime and grunge expected from time in the lowest dungeon. At that moment, he was seated in a simple chair, ankles and wrists secured, in the center of the Hokage's office. The man in power was not currently in the office, however, and Shikamaru assumed that his fate would be revealed when the wily old man arrived.

The men who had brought him up from the depths of the tower left him there nearly an hour ago. Since they had departed, and after Shikamaru's eyes had readjusted to being in the light, his mind had been busy at work; he pondered Kokuzoku's plans, what his companions outside the tower were doing, how he could possibly manage to pull off an escape….

Amidst all this planning, his thoughts continuously jumped back down to the dungeons and the grimy, bloody finger he had seen protruding from the trap door, belonging to one of the three prisoners hidden beneath. They had been kept alive thus far by an unusually kind Chaita secretly supplying them with food and water. With Shikamaru's removal from the dungeon, however, the Chaita had no excuse to return with his small gifts of life; Shikamaru wondered how long the three would last, and how long it would be before someone discovered their bodies.

This melancholy train of thought ended as the door opened. It was not the silver-clad Kokuzoku who entered, however. Shikamaru's eyes widened.

"_Neji_."

The last time Shikamaru had seen his friend had been in that office. Neji had been in Chaita clutches for over a month at that point, an occupant of the very cell Shikamaru had proceeded to inhabit. Their encounter, however, had not been a pleasant one. Shikamaru had watched in horror as Kokuzoku, gleefully grasping the gaunt cheeks of his Hyuuga prisoner, had ensnared Neji with his halsegan; the pearly, lunar glow had faded from the Hyuuga's pale eyes and was replaced with the harsh glint of Chaita silver.

"Fancy seeing you here," Shikamaru drawled, cocking an eyebrow and eyeing his friend for some sign of recognition. "What are you doing, Neji? You're working for _Kokuzoku_? The insane old man who massacred your entire family?"

No response showed on the pale face; Shikamaru tried a different route. "Look what he's got you wearing. I'm sorry to say, Neji, but silver is not your color."

The Hyuuga stared at Shikamaru without the slightest trace of recognition; if possible, there was less emotion displayed on that familiar face than usual.

Shikamaru let out a sigh; from the still-open door, he heard a cackle of laughter. Raikou Chaita, slithered into the open.

"Giving up so soon? I suppose that's the smart track. Neji is beyond any help _you _could provide."

The willowy girl sauntered gracefully across the room, giving the conscious prisoner a glinting smirk. "He's on our side now. Isn't that right, Neji?" she simpered, snaking rippling arms around his neck, pressing herself against his back. Nestling her sharp chin into his shoulder, she gave a small titter of laughter.

Shikamaru shot the woman a burning glare, pointedly ignoring the spidery hands now caressing their way up and down the Hyuuga's chest.

"Does your grandpa get to feel when you do that to his prisoner, because I'm sure he enjoys it _very_ much."

Raikou's self-satisfied smirk disappeared. Her hands stopped roaming, instead clenching at her prisoner's shoulders with white knuckles.

Like venom from a snake, she spat, "You feel this is a time for wit, Shikamaru Nara?"

A harsh laugh burst into the room. "This young man _always_ feels it is the time for wit. Do not let it affect you, Granddaughter."

The Viper and the Wit turned to see Kokuzoku enter the room, leaning heavily on his cane and glaring coolly at his prisoner. He walked right up to Shikamaru, bending down to bring his face mere inches from that of his prisoner. Shikamaru slammed his eyes shut, but Kokuzoku only laughed. Drops of saliva showered Shikamaru's chin and mouth. He felt the old man's breath wafting over him as the old man whispered excitedly.

"The end is near, though. Oh yes. Soon, young man, you will have no time left at all."

…

…

…

It was as though the clouds had assembled to bid farewell to their companion; the noontime sun was lost behind a dark, rumbling sea of the sky's largest inhabitants. The villagers assembling in the Chunin stadium to witness the execution muttered amongst themselves, pondering this foreboding omen. The audience was not nearly as large as that of Kokuzoku's recent assembly; those who had come gathered on the combat turf before the newly constructed execution platform.

At five minutes to twelve, the overseers of the execution appeared and made their way onto the platform. Shizune and Tsunade, looking appropriately morose for an execution, settled themselves quietly on the chairs designated for them. Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, and Kurenai assembled behind their Hokage, and numerous other Chaita officials and guards stationed themselves on and around the stage. Lastly, straight-backed and somber, Kokuzoku made his way onto the podium, flanked by his granddaughter and his Hyuuga slave. The trio stood formally at the front of the platform, facing the crowd of several hundred. Quiet fell.

"My good citizens, it is a grave affair that brings us here today. The taking of a life is never a simple matter. Deaths on the battlefield are different, because one is facing nameless enemies. A battle of self-defense is one in which death is sometimes the only answer. We are not on a battlefield today, citizens, but this is indeed an act of self-defense. The man we face today threatened the very foundation upon which our lives are built: the village. He attempted murder on our Hokage who, we all know, _is_ the very heart of the village. For this crime, he must be duly punished."

At these words, two Chaita approached the stage, a bound, hooded figure struggling between them.

"Alas, citizens, there is more afoot in this display of justice than attempted murder. This would-be murderer is not a nameless enemy, but a member of this very family we call Konoha. He went to Academy with your children, enjoyed the safety of these walls, participated in community events. And yet, he still felt it necessary to try and destroy this peace we live in by piercing the heart of Lady Tsunade, the heart of our village, with a kunai. Thankfully, the attack was stopped." He lay a hand to his chest, pausing a moment to reflect upon his act of sacrifice. Several people in the crowd hesitantly applauded.

Kokuzoku stepped to the hooded figure now kneeling before the crowd. "This criminal is none other than your own Shikamaru Nara!"

Despite the crowd already knowing this tidbit of information, a sizeable gasp was heard as the hood was torn away to reveal the worn and weary face of the young Nara.

"Justice shall be ours!" Kokuzoku roared into the crowd, raising a fist. "Our village is strong, and will not fall to this evil little hand!"

He turned and gestured to the blond woman seated behind him, who stood and joined him before the crowd. She echoed his cry. "Justice!" The emotion Kokuzoku had been failing to draw from the villagers surfaced with the encouragement of the woman. Shouts for Shikamaru's demise rose and more fists were thrust into the air.

The victim stared out at the crowd with dull eyes.

_Well then. If this is how it will end, there's quite a bit I've left undone…_

Casting his gaze to the clouds, his minds eye filled with images of a blond young woman with lively blue eyes.

A long, lethal sword had been produced and was now clutched comfortably in the hands of a particularly burly Chaita. For the last time, he heard Kokuzoku spout his word-vomit.

"Your time has come, Shikamaru Nara; the village has deemed it so."

His gaze was ripped from the sky as hands roughly shoved Shikamaru forward until his forehead smashed into the wooden planks. A foot was firmly planted atop his crown. Silence fell on the crowd and, closing his eyes, Shikamaru let a long, slow sigh escape his lips.

_I'm sorry, Ino. _

A roar like a tidal wave smashed into the stadium. People turned, swamped with sudden terror, and saw once again figures mounting the wall of the stadium. Kokuzoku, his triumphant gaze on the victim at his feet, turned and let loose a howl of rage. His sound was lost, however, in the din of a second cacophonous wave of sound. Kokuzoku felt shivers dance along his spine and down to his fingers and toes as the sources of the voices leapt from the wall, still emitting their earth-shattering battle cries, and flew directly toward the platform. Towards him.

A fire erupted inside Shikamaru as two cherished voices roared his name.

"_Shikamaruuu!"_

Kokuzoku shrieked, "Kill him!"

But too late.

The swordsman was bulldozed by a bellowing comet of armor and hair.

A warm body smashed into the Nara and seized him in a determined grasp. Shikamaru let himself be carried with her momentum and the pair rolled off the platform, landing in a dusty heap below as the sounds of battle erupted above. His mind spun; Shikamaru struggled to right himself, this simple task impeded by the arms bound tightly behind him. Familiar arms, grasping his shoulders, pulled him upright and enclosed him in a desperate embrace.

"Ino," he gasped, struggling to catch a glimpse of the face buried in his shoulder. "Ah, Ino…"

Her frenzied heartbeats thudded in his chest.

For several moments breathing was all they could do; slowly, deep, calming breaths replaced the rapid pants of adrenaline.

Shikamaru spat a stray strand of blond hair from his mouth.

"Please untie me, woman."

Shikamaru felt his rescuer stiffen. Ino lifted her face, indignation rising in her glinting blue eyes. She opened her mouth but before she could speak, Shikamaru leaned forward and brushed his cracked, thirsty lips to hers.

Shivers erupted from the contact, exploding through her body. But before her mind could wrap around this new and pleasant sensation, Shikamaru rocked backward, staring at the girl with one eyebrow raised. Ino blinked, her eyebrows up by her hairline. She hesitantly raised one hand, and for a moment Shikamaru feared it coming into brutal contact with his cheek. However, he had no reason to fear. A triumphant laugh burst from the young woman as she seized Shikamaru in another embrace and returned his kiss with the determination and confidence that characterized the Ino he loved.

Above them, the battle roared.

"That needed to be settled before one of us died," Shikamaru breathed as they broke apart, reluctantly. Ino nodded, flushed and slightly out of breath. "Now, please untie me."

Ino scuttled behind him and saw, to her dismay, the glowing metal cuffs binding Shikamaru's arms. "I need a key," she groaned. "I can't break these."

Shikamaru hissed a sigh. "Dammit. Well, you should go help. I'll think of something."

Ino nodded and, stealing his lips for another moment, leapt upward, rejoining the battle. She found chaos.

Sakura and Tsunade had left the platform and were battling with enormous destruction around the stadium. The audience was trying to escape the battle, but many were forced to change their direction as student and teacher exchanged colossal blows. Likewise, Sasuke and Kakashi were creating quite the disruption as lightning sparked between the pair at each exchange. Kiba wrestled with Kurenai as Akamaru tore at many a Chaita grunt foolish enough to engage the dog. As she watched, Chouji lifted above his head the bulky Chaita he had stopped from executing his best friend; with a victorious bellow Chouji sent the man flying across the stadium and the man landed with a glorious rumble in the stands.

Chouji swung to face Ino, eyes blazing and cheeks alight.

"He's okay," Ino yelled. "We need a key to unlock-."

A roaring and a flash of metal sent the two skyward, blood trickling from shallow cuts on both bodies. They were followed upward in their flight by the bellowing bear that was their teacher. Shikamaru was temporarily pushed from their minds as Ino and Chouji recovered, engaging the Chaita-minded Asuma now bearing down on them.

The Chaita and their prisoners, no longer the victims of surprise, were swiftly organizing themselves and soon the rebels found themselves facing more than only the people they had initially targeted. Lee and Tenten, who had yet to reach their target, were now separated from their Hyuuga by an impassable wall of green spandex and silver. Hanabi had managed to land a hefty blow to Kokuzoku's gut before she was sent spiraling off into the arena by a strike from her cousin. The old man himself was bellowing orders while fighting to avoid coming into contact with an enraged and snarling orange figure. Likewise, Temari and Shino were working towards Kokuzoku but continuously found themselves confronted with fresh Chaita troops.

Battle raged in the arena as the last of the civilians managed to flee. Chaos reigned as students and teachers faced off, taking down much of the stadium as they fought. The students fought as best as they could, but each knew that the likeliness of victory over their teachers, in the current situation, was not high. They were waiting for the force that made their teachers the enemy to be destroyed. They were waiting for Naruto to make contact with Kokuzoku.

After nearly ten minutes of battle, that moment came, and every person in the stadium knew it. The signal? Naruto's normal combat snarls and yells came to a halt. The few seconds of silence that followed were then broken by the mightiest battle roar ever to resonate in the walls of the arena.

Kokuzoku realized, the instant Naruto laid hands upon him, that more than his dreams, his regime, and his family were in danger; Naruto Uzumaki could and would take his life if given the chance. Kokuzoku was determined not to give him that chance.

Breaking away from the youth's clutch, Kokuzoku turned on Naruto and had at him with his cane. Naruto threw up his arms to shield his face from the lightning-quick rain of blows descending upon him. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he continued to push forward, searching with his foot for the old man's leg. Kokuzoku avoided his probing appendage with nimble steps as he changed the speed and timing of his blows. Foregoing his shield, Naruto plunged forward, arms outstretched, to seize Kokuzoku around the waist. The cane delivered one last, splintering blow to Naruto's brow before it flew from its wielder's grasp. The pair crashed to the floor. Blood gushed from Naruto's brow onto Kokuzoku as the young man began to pummel the Chaita like a piece of disobedient meat. In an instant, however, he felt a familiar presence at his back. The next thing he knew jabs were connecting with chakra points all over his body with the speed capable only of Neji Hyuuga.

"_Neji!_" Naruto gasped. The slave seized the limp Naruto by the shoulders and tossed him away like a rag doll. Naruto soared from the platform and landed on the dirt of the arena. He scrambled to right himself, his arms and legs not wishing to cooperate as they protested the blocking of their natural inner flow.

"Naruto, MOVE!" Naruto had not even seen Shikamaru, slumped in the shadows, when the other youth shouted the warning. Naruto turned to see where the danger was coming from and managed to leap away just as Sakura came rocketing from across the stadium, landing with an enormous crash in the dirt Naruto had just occupied. Naruto leapt to her side but had only put a hand to her shoulder when Tsunade arrived. As Sakura reengaged her teacher, Naruto's eyes sought Kokuzoku. He found the old man draped over Neji's back, the pair disappearing over the wall. Initial panic subsided as he saw the two familiar figures on Neji's tale, assuring Naruto the Hyuuga would be followed. He would follow, too, as soon as his hokage gave him the chance.

…

…

…

Tenten, never losing sight of Neji from the moment they entered the arena, saw her teammate take hold of the Chaita lord and head to the wall, away from the battle.

"Lee!"

She pointed, letting fly a handful of senbon with her other hand.

"We must follow!" Lee growled. With a mighty roar, he seized the duo he had been battling and threw them with all his might at his teacher. "Come, Tenten!"

Temporarily free, the pair leapt into the air, hot on the tail of Kokuzoku and Neji. They remained close behind all the way across the village. Tenten did not let them travel in peace, keeping a steady barrage of pointy objects flying towards their prey.

Rage boiled in her stomach as, time and again, Kokuzoku maneuvered her friend, his taxi, to act as his shield.

"These are for _you_, you _bastard_!" She bellowed, after four more of her senbon buried themselves in Neji's arm.

Kokuzoku's only response was to urge his vehicle onward, pushing the Hyuuga to move even faster. Lee and Tenten would not be shaken, however, and kept on their tail up to the gate of the Hokage's Tower. Skidding to a halt inside the front gate, the pair froze. Kokuzoku was disappearing through a door at the far end of the entrance hall, leaning heavily to one side. Standing before them, all alone, was Neji.

Tenten let out a menacing growl. "Kokuzoku did this on purpose; he knew we would want to stay with Neji, so now he can escape."

Lee had eyes only for Neji, and responded to Tenten with a low curse. "I would have hoped we would not take either of them single-handed, but it looks as though he is forcing our hand."

He tore his gaze from Neji and seized Tenten's, eyes blazing. "I will follow K-."

The wall behind them exploded, sending the pair flying forward. A familiar roar resounded in the enormous hall.

"Naruto!" Lee called, springing to his feet and turning to the other boy. "Kokuzoku has gone through that door, alone!"

In a flash of orange Naruto dashed after Kokuzoku. A flash of silver from the opposite side of the hall made to block him, but green spandex intervened.

Lee seized Neji around the middle and, with a roar, threw him away from Naruto.

"No you do not, Neji Hyuuga!" Lee raised his fists, massive eyebrows set, a frown that blazed with determination firm on his face. "It is with Tenten and I that you shall engage! Kokuzoku shall control you no more!"

Neji twisted in the air, but before he could make use of his momentum a flock of kunai hit him, pinning him to the opposite wall. He struggled as Tenten and Lee approached, identical pain etched on both faces.

"Neji," Tenten stared hard at the Hyuuga's face, searching for pieces of the Neji she loved. Cold, hard silver was all she found. "Where are you, Neji? What has Kokuzoku done with the real you?"

The Hyuuga met her gaze, twisting his face into a contorted smirk. "What do you mean? Neji is right here."

Lee and Tenten stood mere feet from their friend, the closest they had been in nearly four weeks. For missions, this was acceptable; for any other reason, unnatural.

"We did not ask for Kokuzoku," Lee blazed, raising a finger to the Hyuuga. "We want our friend!"

"You're a member of Team Gai, Neji, don't you remember? We're your team-."

Neji's leg dislodged the kunai pinning it and landed a swift blow to Tenten's gut, sending the girl reeling backward.

Lee's eyes widened briefly before his brows came down heavily upon them. "I see," he said, in a tone of resigned acceptance. "Kokuzoku has grown attached to you, Neji. He will not give you up without a fight."

Another instant, the rest of the kunai pins clattered to the ground.

Lee was there to meet him. "And so he will have one!"

…

…

…

Hanabi, scrabbling to her feet, debris tumbling from her, saw Naruto disappearing over the wall of the stadium. Sweeping the battle, she saw the figures now missing from the mix. In an instant her decision was made; like a shadow of lightning she bolted after the orange blur.

Arriving at the tower minutes later, she found Tenten and Lee tearing it apart with Neji. Weapons littered the ground, chunks of stone had fallen from the walls and now littered the ground, creating a perilous battle field. The three nin moved with a speed new to the eyes of Hanabi. She had seen Neji fight, but nothing of the past compared with the fluidity and power displayed before her. On their part, Lee and Tenten matched him blow for blow. The stakes in this battle were unlike any other.

Activating her Byakugan, she saw Naruto sprinting up several flights of stairs in hot pursuit of the old man desperately barricading himself inside the Hokage's office. With a frown, she watched as squads of Chaita entered the stairwell, some heading up after Naruto, others tumbling down to discover the source of the ruckus.

A hand landed on her shoulder; Hanabi spun, chakra rushing to her fingertips, but stopped when she recognized the offending limb's owner.

"Where are Naruto and Kokuzoku?" Kiba demanded, his eyes narrowed on the three battling before them; blood dripped from a long gash along his jaw, but he seemed not to notice. Shino stood grimly behind him.

Hanabi gestured, and the three dashed across the battlefield, managing to avoid an interaction with Team Gai.

"There are Chaita running up and down the stairs," Hanabi gasped, staring upward, Byakugan activated, "And Naruto is already at Kokuzoku's office."

"I'm there!" Kiba raced up the stairs; a moment later Hanabi and Shino heard him encounter the guards above.

...

…

…

Tenten slammed into a crumbling wall. Her back screamed in protest, but in an instant she had pushed herself to her feet. With gritted teeth she stumbled a few steps back toward Lee and Neji. In a flash, two crushing kicks to the shoulders sent the young woman crashing to the ground; a wail of frustration escaped her lips, catching the attention of her teammates.

"Tenten!"

Lee's gaze flew from his teammate to the woman standing above her, whose silver eyes were glinting with mirth.

"Would you like some assistance, Neji?"

Lee gave the woman a withering glare, shouting, "Our friend needs no more attention from you Chaita scum!"

Raikou gave a small pout, turning from the bushy-browed ninja to the Hyuuga. "Neji, are you going to let this boy talk to me like that?"

Tenten let out a roar and, in a flash, twisted Raikou's ankles with her own and sent the older woman crashing to the ground. "Don't talk to him," Tenten hissed, her eyes blazing, "Like you _know_ him!"

Twisting herself into the straddle position, Tenten managed to pin Raikou's hands. Raikou struggled, but to no avail; the older woman was several inches taller than Tenten, but could not compete with muscle mass.

This slick, serpentine woman and her simpering tone towards Neji, _her_ Neji, brought forth a rage within Tenten the likes of which she had never experienced. She could have pummeled Raikou to a bleeding, broken pulp in a heartbeat. However, Tenten delivered only one devastating punch to Raikou's cheek before she was knocked from her prey to the ground. The hands gripping her, the chest pressed against her, were familiar, and this sudden rush of recognition momentarily disarmed Tenten. She flopped to the ground and found herself pinned, staring up into his stern, beloved face.

"Neji-."

In a flash his hand was around her throat and a kunai was inches from her brow.

…

…

…

_The young man, tall, with long dark hair held in a loose ponytail, sat very still. His legs were folded beneath him and his hands rested gently upon his knees. His face was relaxed and his eyes were closed. What was he thinking? _

_ He did not know. He did not think. He simply was. _

_ He sat, and sat, and sat, lost in an ocean of white and silver. _

_ What was his name?_

_ …Neji. _

_ His lips gave the slightest twitch. _

_ Neji?_

…

…

…

Kokuzoku paced, his heart and mind racing. At any moment, Naruto Uzumaki, or one of the other rebels, was going to try and break into his office, he was positive. Of course he had been expecting trouble at the execution; it had been planned, in part, as a way to lure out the rest of the rebels hiding out in the city. However, he had not expected there to be so many, and he had not expected them to put up such challenge. If he was honest, he had been most surprised to find Naruto Uzumaki on top of him after only ten minutes of battle.

_Calm. I must be calm._

He moved quickly to the desk, wincing from the pain in his leg and chest. Trembling hands sought pen and paper, upon which he scribbled a quick, frantic message. He fumbled a messy seal, then spun on the spot, searching in vain for a mean of transportation.

The sound of a small explosion right outside his barricaded door sent the old man to his knees. Wall-hangings wavered and a bottle of ink rolled off his desk and smashed to the carpet with a tinkle. Kokuzoku tossed aside his message and dragged himself upright, clutching at the desk for support. The door hinges rattled as something ferocious battered against them once…twice….

They exploded inward; the barricade of furniture scattered as the orange-clad figure burst into the room.

Kokuzoku knew he could not run.

…

…

…

At Tenten's cry, Shino turned from the stairwell and peered into the entrance hall. His brows contracted at the sight of Raikou. Putting a hand on Hanabi's shoulder, he said quickly, "Be careful."

Hanabi, surprised, turned as he disappeared back through the doorway. The next instant, however, a figure stumbled down the stairs from the battle above; it was not Kiba.

Like a cat Hanabi leapt at him; he was fast and on guard, managing to block her jabs. She leapt back a few feet, quickly taking in her enemy. He was young, the youngest Chaita she had seen; his eyes, studying her, widened.

"A Hyuuga!"

Her family's name, spoken on Chaita lips, sparked a fire in her chest. With a roar she lunged forward. He did not move to defend himself as her kunai buried themselves deeply in his chest.

Bunta let out a groan, sinking to his knees, hands flying to clutch at the wounds now spurting blood. Hanabi gave each knife a twist, stepping back to glare at the man with more hate in her eyes than she had ever felt.

That hate dissipated in a sentence.

"Hinata…is your sister?"

His tone froze her from top to bottom. Affection, pain, sympathy, urgency.

He slumped forward, grabbing her hand in one of his bloody own. With wide, tearing eyes, he stared up at her and gasped, "She's alive…in the dungeon…the hole-."

He crumpled, the floor forcing the knives deeper. Hanabi stared down at the man, her whole body numb. She watched his torso give a final twitch, then lay deathly still. She glanced up the stairs, down which sounds of Kiba's battle were rolling. A spark lit in her chest.

In an instant, she was in the other stairwell, hurtling down three stairs at a time.

_Hinata!_

…

…

…

"Neji, stop! That is Tenten!"

Lee leapt forward, meaning to intervene. Raikou jumped to her feet, throwing herself at Lee and knocking him off course. For a moment they wrestled, but Lee swiftly subdued her with his enormous strength. Desperately he turned back to his friends, Neji with his kunai still poised above Tenten.

Tenten was staring up at him, eyes blazing, brows knit, one hand gripping the wrist holding the kunai. She held his gaze with hers; not a muscle moved in either body.

Momentarily transfixed by this silent battle, Lee did not see the kunai until it was buried hilt-deep in his thigh.

He let out a howl, not of pain, but rage at his own stupidity. He whipped back around to deal with Raikou and saw Shino darting toward them. The heavily clothed shinobi seized the unsuspecting Raikou under the arms and, in an instant, lifted her out of the hall.

Raikou did not appreciate this and, after Shino had released her, sprang at him in a vicious attack. The bugs were already streaming from Shino's coat.

…

…

…

Within minutes, the Hokage's office was a blown-out shell. The wall of windows looking out on the city was demolished and the battle between Kokuzoku and Naruto had moved onto the rooftops. Words were not exchanged; Naruto was, for once in his life, incapable of conjuring words to adequately express the storm of feeling inside him. Kokuzoku had nothing to say. He was in a fight for his life, and could spare neither time nor energy for speech. This young shinobi was like no enemy the aged Kokuzoku had ever faced. Every ounce of mental energy he could muster was needed to provide the necessary defenses and put forward acceptable attacks.

The mental strain was beginning to drag him down.

He had only one choice.

Although it killed him on the inside, he knew it was all he could do to even hope for a victory. Slowly, he began to cut his mental ties.

…

…

…

Battle raged in the arena as the rebels waited for some sign that progress was being made in the battle against Kokuzoku. As first Lee and Tenten, then Naruto, Kiba, Shino, and Hanabi, left the arena, the battle began to tip in favor of the Chaita. Not only were the remaining rebels facing three to one odds, but the enemy's control over their teachers did not appear to be waning at all.

Sasuke and Sakura continued to destroy the stadium as they faced Kakashi and Tsunade. Akamaru dealt with Kurenai as gently as possible, not understanding why Kiba had ordered him to face her, but aware that something out of the ordinary was happening. Chouji had taken control of the battle with Asuma, leaving Ino to aid Temari in the battle against Gai, Shizune, and the rest of the Chaita. The blondes could have held their own against the dozen or so Chaita, but the addition of Gai and Shizune was causing problems.

Shikamaru was having an intense inner battle under the execution platform. He was practically useless while his arms and chakra remained unusable, but listening to the others' struggles, particularly the cries of Ino and Chouji, was driving him mad.

His problem was solved when Shizune was knocked off the platform and saw him.

"Ah!"

As Ino dodged a rain of blows from a wiry, swift Chaita, she saw Shizune drag Shikamaru out into the open. Shikamaru used his legs and head to defend as much as possible, but Shizune easily dodged his attacks. Soon he was pinned and Shizune was reaching for a weapon with which to finish the young man.

Ino let out a scream, trying and failing to disengage herself from her adversaries; she had to get there, to stop her-.

"Nooooo!"

With a blade in the air, Shizune froze, then crumpled; her weapon clattered to the ground, her eyes closed.

Shikamaru stared at the unconscious woman, and knew that, finally, someone was getting to the heart of all the trouble.

…

…

…

Hanabi had never been to the Konoha dungeons before, but there was no time for sight-seeing. She flew from floor to floor, scanning each cell as she passed, searching frantically for some sign of life, some sign of her sister. On the third floor she froze and used her Byakugan to stare down, down through four more floors until she found the very lowest dungeon.

There she saw three figures. And they were alive.

…

…

…

Even as he released Shizune from his command, Kokuzoku felt one connection waver, and it was not one he planned on relinquishing. Quickly severing his control over two Konoha elders and Kurenai, he poured even more energy into his bond with Neji Hyuuga.

_ I will not_, he thought desperately, leaping skyward to avoid a lunge from Naruto, _give up such a weapon. Not __that__ easily._

…

…

…

Tenten stared at Neji as she had never stared before. She felt as though she was trying to send more than just images into his silvery gaze; their history, their friendship, their team, _anything_ to try and break the control Kokuzoku had on his mind.

For an instant, the silver flickered, and Tenten was gifted with one fleeting glimpse of pearl. A gasp escaped her frozen lips.

As quickly as it appeared, the pearl vanished in a rapid fog of silver. The muscles beneath her wrist flexed and Tenten found herself fighting against him once again.

Lee entered the fray with a roar and soon the kunai was gone as the pair wrestled amid the stones and debris.

Tenten had seen the light; Neji was there, and she was going to break him free.

…

…

…

Kiba had seen the guard slip past him and rush down the stairs. He meant to shout a warning to his companions below, but was not given the chance. The last guard crumpled before him and Kiba took a moment to catch his breath. His ears caught no sound from immediately below; deciding Naruto did not need his assistance at that precise moment, Kiba leapt back down the stairs to where he had left Hanabi and Shino. Neither were to be found; a dead Chaita lay in a pool of blood at the first floor landing. Kiba would have gone back up the stairs, but a set of small bloody footprints caught his eye. With a low growl, he leapt after them as they descended with apparent urgency down into the dungeons.

Dungeons were never a place he frequented, if he could avoid it. His sensitive nose caught the foulest smells often undetected by other humans. As fast as he could he descended the levels, sensing the desperation in the steps he followed. Hanabi's scent filled his nose; as he crossed the seventh landing, a familiar, beloved smell hit his nostrils that made his stomach lurch.

_No. Not here. _

The cells he had passed were devoid of humans completely. Kiba feared he was about to encounter a corpse that would haunt the rest of his living hours. Almost timidly, he approached the last staircase. Muffled sobs met his ears.

He peered down the stairs, Hyuuga scent flooding his nose.

Two figures huddled on the stairs, one clutching the limp form of the other. The sobbing intensified.

"Hanabi," Kiba called, an unintended sharpness in his voice alerting him to his own fear. "What-."

She turned and in the faint light Kiba saw the salty glaze on her cheeks. But his gaze did not stay there for long. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped in horror at the skeleton clutched in the girl's arms; his stomach turned to lead when he saw that it was breathing.

"Hi…Hi…"

He gulped. The word would not come out. Clumsily, he scooted down the stairs, reaching a trembling hand toward his teammate.

She raised hollow, tear-stained eyes to him. She croaked a whisper that sounded like his name.

"Hinata-."

Kiba found tears sliding down his cheeks. His fingers brushed the filthy bones perched atop Hinata's skeletal wrist, hesitantly, then gently. He was sharing the stair with Hanabi and together they cradled their beloved Hinata, the tears speaking for them all.

…

…

…

When Kakashi collapsed, Sasuke knew things were finally turning in their favor. Kneeling at his teacher's side, he called him back into consciousness. With one long, low groan, Kakashi's one visible eye fluttered open. It roamed, coming to rest on Sasuke's anxious face.

"Oh my…could you catch your old teacher up on what is going on, Sasuke?"

With a smirk he could not contain, Sasuke gave his sensei only the most urgent details, as well as the action that now must be taken.

Staggering to his feet, Kakashi took in the scene as Sasuke narrated.

"Yes, I'd say that messy little knot needs our help the most." After a few rapid stretches, Kakashi put a hand to his head. "I feel like someone put a blender to my mind. When this is over we need a long chat to fix this up."

Sasuke grunted, and together the pair leapt across the arena, pitching themselves into the knot of Chaita and blonde kunoichi battling it out around the execution platform.

Inside the knot, Ino's stomach clenched, bracing itself for the kick Gai was about to land and which she was unable to block. However, the pain did not come; suddenly Kakashi stood before her, taking the blow to his own torso before lunging forward and engaging Gai himself.

An enormous sigh escaped her lips; her gaze sought Sasuke and found him leaving the main battle, racing instead toward the pair still battling alone in the stands.

Akamaru was anxiously bathing the face of Kurenai in saliva, urging the unconscious woman to wake. Shizune had not moved, her slack face resting in the dirt. Shikamaru was searching her person for a key.

Suddenly, shockingly, Ino saw victory looming on the distant horizon.

…

…

…

Denkou could hear the red-eyed toddler before him, making small cooing noises interspersed with the handful of simple words she had learned. She banged something small and wooden against the floor several times, moved her attention to small packages of vegetables and herbs, stacking them, knocking them down.

The blindfold prevented him from actually seeing the child, but his well-trained ears could figure this out on their own. He also learned, judging by the sounds drifting to his ears from another room, that he was being kept in some sort of store. From the smell: it sold ramen. Good ramen, at that.

Denkou dove into himself, blocking out the pain of the cramps forming in his bound arms and legs. Breathing as deeply as he could through his gag, he concentrated on the silver strands anchored in his mind and branching all throughout the city. Latching onto the thickest, closest one, he slid along it until he found the mind of his prisoner.

_You are to come to the closest ramen restaurant. Find the prisoner in the back. Release him. _

Knowing the slave was on her way, Denkou sighed, long and slow. Leaning back against the wall, gently, he settled down to wait.

…

…

…

Battle in the arena ceased. Those fighting for the Chaita, Gai, Asuma, and Tsunade still among them, simply turned and fled as fast as their legs would carry them. The Konoha shinobi, taken by surprise, simply watched them go and took the moment to catch their breath.

Sasuke, one arm around a somewhat battered Sakura, guided his partner back to the execution platform, where the conscious were gathering.

"What was that about?" Ino asked, digging through the pockets of the nearest Chaita corpse. _One of these bastards has to have a key…_

Shikamaru leapt lightly onto the platform, staring up at the wall with dark eyes. "I would guess Kokuzoku is calling them. Judging by this," he nodded to Kakashi, Kurenai, and the still-unconscious Shizune, "He's not having an easy time."

Chouji, still breathing heavily from his fight with Asuma, gave Shikamaru a broad smile and a one-armed hug. Shikamaru returned the smile with his own twisted grin.

Kakashi carefully lifted Shizune from the dust, staring at her face intently. "It's a long journey back to your proper mind," he remarked. "She's been under him from the beginning, probably."

Kurenai, restored to consciousness by the diligent licks of Akamaru, scratched him gratefully as she said, "Where is Kokuzoku?"

"He left with the Hyuuga over the wall," Temari remarked, leaning on her fan. "Although I bet…"

In several quick leaps she stood on the wall. Shielding her eyes with a hand, she surveyed the city.

"Yes…I'd say that's Kokuzoku and Naruto over there."

In a moment the others had joined her. Her pointing finger was unnecessary; in the distance, the huge clouds of dust and the sound of explosions told them the whereabouts of their enemy and, presumably, the rest of their team.

Ino, who alone had remained on the platform, gave a shout of victory, raising into the air a small, iron key.

Chouji gave Shikamaru a warm clap on the shoulder before leaping away with Kakashi, Kurenai, Sasuke, Sakura, and Temari towards the fight. Ino landed next to Shikamaru and, smiling victoriously, set to work on the bonds.

"Ahhh," Shikamaru sighed, stretching his numb arms above him as the cuffs fell with a _clank_. "That's b-."

Before his arms came down Ino had seized him in another vicious hug. This time, Shikamaru could, and did, return the action. For a moment that seemed shorter than it was, the battle was forgotten. Everything that mattered was contained within the protective circle of their arms. Shikamaru's brow came to rest on a warm, welcoming shoulder. He let out a small sigh. Ino smiled into his shoulder, eyes shut tight.

As they pulled apart, Ino took firm hold of Shikamaru's hand. They exchanged a blazing gaze.

"Let's rid ourselves of Kokuzoku, please. He's so irksome."

"HELL YES!" Ino roared, and together they leapt toward the battle.

….

**THANK YOU WONDERFUL READERS! Those of you who choose to remain nameless and those who leave reviews, you are truly the most wonderful, devoted readers an author could ask for. 3 The Elven-Spear, MuSiC HaTs, ObamaHater, Tsebe Uchiha, Stiehl, siny, M.O.N.S.T.E..POCKY., Arrowachi, Wandering Wonderer, The Laughing Phoenix.**

Was it worth the 7 months I made you wait? I truly hope it comes close. I'm trying! My inspiration for this story comes in waves. BUT…

This story shall be finished before the end of the summer.

I hope we all make it through!

I'll see you all soon!

Reading Maid, over and out.


End file.
